National Council on Information, National Orientation calls for reopening 13 centres overseas

The National Council on Information and National Orientation has called for the reopening of 13 information centres overseas and the establishment of offices for the News Agency of Nigeria, NAN, Voice of Nigeria, VON and Nigeria Television Authority, NTA, abroad.

The council reached the resolutions at its 48th meeting held in Kaduna, where its position disclosed by the chairman of the drafting committee, Binta Mamman, Niger State Commissioner of Information, after a three-day meeting in Kaduna, where 77 delegates from 17 states attended to deliberate on information management in the country.

A communique from the meeting called for, “National Information Service Centres in 13 countries abroad, with four regional/zonal headquarters within the centres for prompt decision-making, and engendering positive image for the country globally.”

”That the News Agency of Nigeria, NAN, Nigeria Television Authority (NTA), and Voice of Nigeria, VON, open offices in some selected countries to complement the efforts of the National Information Service Centres, NISCs, to address the challenges associated with deployment protocols, limited career progression, and resource shortages for Information and Public Relations Officers in MDAs at both state and federal levels.

The meeting also called for the repositioning of the National Institute of Public Information, NIPI, Kaduna, as a citadel for conducting training and capacity building for information and public relations practitioners in the country, as well as other staff in the public service and private sector, adding that the Nigerian Institute of Public Relations should consider adopting the institute as one of its training centres.

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It called for the completion of the Federal Government Printing Press, FGPP in Asokoro, Abuja, to ensure its statutory duty of printing and publishing official and confidential documents of the government and its agencies.

The meeting suggested, ”In addition, states should consider patronising the FGP for printing official documents for security and archival purposes and for strengthening the Nigerian Press Council for effective print media regulation in the country and for the development and promotion of strategic public information systems as a tool for inclusivity to address and mitigate political tension in the country.

It recommended the adoption of the News Agency of Nigeria’s initiative to expand its content production and dissemination to include indigenous Nigerian languages, adding that heads of information-based organisations provide appropriate communication facilities, equipment, and infrastructure and a conducive working environment for their organisations.

It opined that media houses should become fully digitised for effective information dissemination, and there is a need for improved conditions of service, salary structure, and regular training for media practitioners to enhance their performance.

The meeting also noted the flagrant abuse and disrespect of the national symbols, calling for measures aimed at restoring the dignity and standardisation of the symbols of unity and identity and also called for additional funding for VON, NTA, and FRCN in the face of today’s challenges.