NITDA Train 50 Women Journalist From North West

The National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) has trained 50 women journalists selected from the North Western part of Nigeria on digital Journalism and distributed 50 sets of computer laptops to the participants with the view to motivate them to embrace the trend of digital technology in their profession.

 

In a joint statement signed and made available to our reporter in Dutse by the state chairman and secretary of NAWOJ Jigawa chapter, Hajia Hauwa Ladan and Hajia Zainab Baba Santali, said the two days’ workshop was held in Jigawa state 3 Star Hotel Dutse under the umbrella of NAWOJ Jigawa chapter.

 

Declaring the workshop open, Director General NITDA, Malam Kashifu Inuwa stated that, the decision to select Jigawa is considering the serenity and passion it has for hosting information communications and technology (ICT) programmes aimed at empowering citizens with the right modern skills and knowledge to global digital trends.

 

The joint statement explained that, the purpose of the training is to create awareness on the potentialities of ICT in journalism and transform the profession especially among women journalists, thereby making it more effective and efficient for them to compete with other prominent global media gladiators.

 

The Director General was represented by Bashir Ibrahim (MIEEE) said NITDA being an agency responsible for regulation and promotion of ICT practice in Nigeria, has taken interest to fully sponsor the program in order to equip the participants with skills and tools required to counter the hazard associated with Cyber Attacks through identifying types of online threats and deploying ways to mitigate them.

 

He congratulated the participants and hoped that the skills acquired during the workshop will be optimally utilized and ensure that the participants will be good ambassadors to the agency, he then declared the workshop open.

 

In her opening remarks, the Chairperson of the Nigerian Association of Women Journalists Jigawa state Chapter Hajiya Hauwa Ladan, appreciated the effort of Mal. Kashifu Inuwa Abdullahi, stated that NITDA has empowered millions of aspiring young people through digital skills and that it has created more jobs as well as lifted people out of poverty.

 

The Chairperson added that in Jigawa alone, NITDA has trained 1,500 students and teachers of English and Mathematics on ICT and more ICT Capacity buildings have been put in place.”We must commend the exemplary gestures of the Minister of Communication and Digital Economy Dr Isa Ali Pantami and Mal Kashif Inuwa Abdullahi for imparting the teeming youth across Nigeria and Jigawa State in particular”. Mrs. Ladan stressed.

 

Commencing the session, the first resource person Miss Sa’ada Aliyu, discusses what makes digital media more efficient than the analogue media, she stated that Digital media uses binary numbers or digits while analog media uses magnetic forces in converting data.

 

Digital media  commonly used software, video games, videos, websites, social media, and online advertising platforms while analogue media are the font-based media (signs, letters, leaflets), print media (book, newspaper, magazine), broadcast media (radio, television), telegraph, telex, telephone, telefax, records, audio cassette, film, photography, video,  and traffic signs.

 

Miss Sa`ada added that digital media is more qualitative in converting sound or voice recording, videos clips, images, CD plates to digital output without tempering with its original quality. Digital media is faster and more reliable because, and you can easily retrieve thousands of files within minutes, either using the i cloud or Google drive softwares.

 

Discussing the aspect of digital journalism, the second resource person Firdausi Aliyu talked about why journalists need to embrace digital journalism, stating the types, rules, principles and importance of digital Journalism.

 

She explained that the emergence of digital journalism in the United Nation started with the production of teletext, which is a news and information service in the form of text and gra