By Saheed Ibrahim

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Mary Agidi, a reporter with Owena Press  Limited, Publisher of The Hope and Weekend Hope has been selected for the sixth edition of the Wole Soyinka Centre for Investigative Journalism’s Female Reporters Leadership Programme (FRLP).

According to a statement signed by WSCIJ’s Executive Director, Motunrayo Alaka, Agidi is among 12 female journalists chosen for the prestigious fellowship. Other selected fellows include Juliet Buna (Crest FM), Melony Ishola (PUNCH), AishaGambo (NAN), Jemilat Nasiru (TheCable), and Bilkis Lawal (Bond FM).

Also joining the cohort are Rasheedat Iliyas (Harmony FM), Temitope Obayendo (Pharmanews), Dana Zagi (Media Trust Group), Chigozie Victor (Big Cabal Media), Christiana Alabi-Akande (Development Reporting Service), and Gloria Attah (Clearview Television).

Alaka described the selection as a renewed commitment to strengthening women’s leadership in newsrooms and amplifying gender-focused investigative journalism in Nigeria.

“Through intensive training and mentorship, this sixth edition of the FRLP Fellowship will equip participants with the skills to champion the cause of improving women’s leadership status in the news, newsrooms, and society,” she stated.

She further highlighted that the FRLP Fellowship and the broader Report Women! News and Newsroom Engagement project have been supported by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation since 2021. The initiative engages media organisations to increase the representation of women in news coverage, newsroom leadership, and as news sources.

“Since its inception in 2014, the Report Women! Programme has worked to increase the quantity and quality of reports on issues affecting women and girls in Nigeria.

“Over the past decade, WSCIJ has trained 537 journalists across Nigeria and Ghana, supported 136 stories and 138 leadership projects, published six research on women’s representation in the media, produced six documentaries, launched a female experts’ source guide and engaged newsrooms on the leadership of women in the news and newsrooms.

“The Female Reporters Leadership Programme, introduced in 2017, has produced 86 fellows across five cohorts and driven intentional efforts to place more women in leadership positions within newsrooms and news.”