World Radio Day 2023: CITAD advocates for credible, factual information from radio stations

The Centre for Information Technology and Development (CITAD) has charged radio stations in Kano state and Nigeria at large to abstain from disseminating fake news, inciting comments and ensuring that only credible and factual information is aired through their mediums.

The Executive Director CITAD, Engr. Yunusa Zakari Ya’u gave the order while speaking with journalists in Kano on the commemoration of 2023 World Radio Day.

Represented by the Centre’s Programs Officer, Buhari Abba said, despite the proliferation of social media and other mass communication platforms, radio remains one of the most trusted and accessible mediums in the world.

Speaking on the theme of the day, “Radio and Peace” the Executive Director urged Journalists in Radio stations to work towards promoting peace among the citizenry while discharging their duties.

Engr. Yunusa Ya’u noted that the theme is apt and timely as the nation moves closer to the 2023 general elections.

He urged all radio broadcasters to leverage the trust listeners have in their mediums to educate and sensitize the citizenry on their roles and responsibilities in electing the right persons to serve at various levels of government.

World Radio Day is an International Day which is celebrated on Feb.13th of every year as decided by member states of UNESCO and adopted by the UN General Assembly in 2012.

Report of the Digital Livelihood and Digital Creativity Beneficiaries Trained on Entrepreneurship, Business Support Sources

Digital Livelihood and Digital Creativity Beneficiaries Trained on Entrepreneurship, Business Support Sources

By

Sagiru Ado Abubakar

Centre for Information Technology and Development (CITAD) under Digital Livelihood and Digital creativity and Innovation Programs has trained young women and girls to acquire information communication technology (ICT) knowledge. The goal of these programs was to contribute to reducing the gender digital divide and unemployment through technology skill transfer that will enable young women and girls to acquire ICT-based entrepreneurship skill and set up small scale ICT-based businesses. To achieve aforementioned goal, on 11th and 12th December, 2022, the Job Placement Information Service (JOPIS) unit of the Center for Information Technology and Development (CITAD) has organized sensitization workshops for the beneficiaries of digital livelihood and digital creativity innovation programs in both Kano and Bauchi (jJama’are and Itas) training centers on how to secure jobs and source entrepreneurship and business support.  

Participants at Itas centre Bauchi State

The workshops introduced the participants to sites that they can visit to secure soft loans and grants from government initiatives, Bank of Industries (BOI), Bank of Agriculture (BOA) and foundations so that they can be self-reliant and even employ others as an entrepreneur cannot work alone. 

At the start of the workshop, a call of volunteers from Save the Children was shared and helped the participants to apply. The job opportunity is looking for applicants with ICT-Based skills similar with that of digital livelihood and digital creativity beneficiaries to actively involved in the implementation of the PLANE project. The opportunity paid attention to female candidates, marginalized groups and those with disabilities

Other opportunities introduced to the participants included Women Startup Challenge, Tech Startup Grant, 2023 ‘Open Minds – Young Voices’ Youth Activists Program, the 3rd Cohort for iHatch free intensive incubation program and the Young African Leaders Initiative (YALI). 

Job Placement Information Services (JOPIS) is a scheme by CITAD to assist youth looking for employment and entrepreneurship opportunities by bringing information about job opportunities to them. Functions of JOPIS Unit are getting job opportunities on newspapers from Libraries, collaborating with reliable sites advertising job opportunities and creating library and reference on the job opportunities so as easily refer to it when the need arises.

Job Placement Officer will be responsibility for providing advice, council and information to prospective applicants. All job vacancies, employment and entrepreneurship opportunities are posting time to time on CITAD facebook groups “friends of CITAD”, “CITAD ALMUNI”, “Peace now” and pages

GBV: Kano records 800 cases of rape, domestic violence in 11 months

NEWS

GBV: Kano records 800 cases of rape, domestic violence in 11 months 

As Stakeholders task Kano Govt on speedy passage of VAPP, Child protection bills 

Dec 7, 2022 – 19:41

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GBV: Kano records 800 cases of rape, domestic violence in 11 months 

Over 800 cases of rape, domestic violence, sexual abuse, online harassment from have been recorded in Kano State from January to November, 2022. 

The disclosure was made by the Gender Officer, Centre for Information Technology and Development (CITAD),  Hajiya Zainab Aminu, who decried the ever rising cases of Gender-Based Violence (GBV) in Kano state. 

She spoke after a road walk to commemorate the 2022 16 Days Activism against GBV from National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Perrsons (NAPTIP), Kano office, to Kano state House of Assembly.

She called on the Kano State House of Assembly to, as a matter of necessity, pass into law the Violence Against Persons Prohibition Act (VAPP) and the Kano state  child protection bills, to enhance the fight against sexual and gender based violence. 

Hajiya Zainab Aminu explained that the aim of the road walk was to create awareness on GBV and advocate for the speedy domestication of the  bills by relevant stakeholders.

She noted  that, if passed into law, the laws would go a long way in curbing the menace, where  perpetrators would be prosecuted in order to have a safer society.

Hajiya Aminu, therefore,  expressed concern over the delay by Kano State House of Assembly, in passing  the Child Protection bill, saying  that domestication and implementation of the act would help to curb gender-based violence in the state.

According to her, “Gender-based violence must be put to a stop because it is an evil act. It ranges from rape, battery and child molestation, among others.”

Also speaking, Head of Department, sexual and gender based violence, NAPTIP Kano zonal command, Hajiya Rasheda Aminu Ibrahim, highlighted that lack of VAP act in Kano limits the prosecution of SGBV offenders.

She said, NAPTIP zonal command which compromises of Kano, Katsina, Jigawa, Kaduna and Bauchi states, was committed to eradicating sexual and gender based violence, child labour and molestation, human trafficking, among others.

In a related development, the CITAD Program Officer, Digital Rights, Alhaji Ali Sabo, has said that “due to the refusal of the president to assent to this bill, Nigerians have been witnessing an increase in the violation of their digital rights by the Nigerian government and its security agencies.”

He said that it is imperative to know that assenting to this bill would pave the way for more development in the country and drive the country’s digital space to a better level.

According to him, the bill when assented to, will strengthen the citizens’ right to the internet and its free use without undue monitoring

 He said that it would help in identification of true owners of personal data which are the owners themselves and the  bill will also encourage the stipulation of due process that should be followed before access is granted to government agencies and others to personal data of citizens

He also noted that there were rampant cases of Gender Based Violence (GBV) because president Muhammadu Buhari has not assented  to the Digital Rights and Freedom Bill in Nigeria which was passed by the National Assembly since 2018.

CITAD 16 ACTIVISM

https://www.thecampuswatch.com/2022/12/08/naptip-citad-others-calls-for-domestication-of-child-rights-act-vapp/

https://stateflash.com/gbv-kano-records-800-cases-of-rape-domestic-violence-in-11-months

https://pyramidfm.com.ng/gbv-citad-naptip-nscdc-others-raise-awareness-campaign/

https://tribuneonlineng.com/stakeholders-task-kano-govt-on-speedy-passage-of-vapp-child-protection-bill/

https://saheliantimes.com/16-days-of-activism-citad-naptip-others-take-campaign-to-kano-streets/

https://justicewatchnews.com/kano-citad-naptip-others-call-for-domestication-of-vapp-child-rights-laws/

https://youtu.be/DzG8fDjkfWg

https://dailyfocus.ng/16-days-of-activism-citad-naptip-others-take-campaign-to-kano-streets/

https://primetimenews.ng/gbv-activism-citad-urges-kano-state-house-of-assembly-to-domestic-implement-child-protection-law/

https://www.radionigeriakaduna.gov.ng/blog/2022/12/06/sgbv-stakeholders-advocate-domestication-

INTERNATIONAL DAY OF PERSONS WITH DISABILITIES 2022 – AWARENESS DAYS

By

Sagiru Ado Abubakar

In its effort to promote an understanding of disability issues and mobilize support for the dignity, rights and well-being of persons with disabilities, the Centre for Information Technology and Development (CITAD) has on Sunday 4th December, 2022 joined the global communities to commemorate this year’s International Day of Persons with Disabilities 2022.  International Day of Persons with Disabilities is a global effort aim at promoting empowerment and helping to create real opportunities for people with disabilities. The celebration is a one-day event held at ground floor, CITAD with a theme “Kano State Disability Law: Prospects and Challenges” has a representation of almost all clusters of People Living with Disabilities in Kano State and dwelled deeply on the Kano State Disability Law signed by His Excellency Executive Governor of Kano State, Dr. Abdullahi Umar Ganduje. Malam Isyaku Garba, CITAD Programs Cordinator represented the Executive Director of CITAD at the event. He welcomed the participants and said that International Day of Persons with Disabilities gives opportunity to government, policy makers, human right activists, development workers and every stakeholder to deliberate on strategic ways to make effective demand for inclusion and accountability on matters that affect people living with abilities. He then hinted that CITAD has been making effort to establish a centre that promote inclusion, access, participation, disability rights and mainstreaming of issues of critical concern of people living with disabilities. 

Malam Sagiru Ado Abubakar coordinates the activities of people living with disabilities at CITAD. He took the participants back on the discussion during Kano Social Influencers Summit (KANSIS 2022) on the arrangement INEC made with regard to PWDs during the forthcoming general elections. He then informed that ‘Technology, Disability and Election’ breakout session in KANSIS 2022 was one of the best sessions in KANSIS 2022 in term of attendance and won momentum of dignitaries. 

Hajiya Bilkisu Ibrahim Mahmoud, a lecturer at College of Arts Science and Remedial Studies, (CAS) Kano chaired the event. In her opening remarks, she acknowledged the work of CITAD in helping the PWDs in Kano to understand the law, makes sure that the law has been provided with all necessary assistance and proper implementation. She apologized to CITAD for her inability to attend the KANSIS 2022 organized by CITAD saying that she was given short notice a day only to the event.

Malam Saifullahi Mukhtar Sadiq, Program Officer, Kanawa Educational Foundation for the Disables and Secretary Visually Impaired Educational Forum, Tudun Maliki, Kano made the first presentation. He presented paper on the Kano State Person with Disability Law signed by His Excellency Governor of Kano State, Dr. Abdullahi Umar Ganduje. He said that the bill was approved November 22 held at Government House, Kano. Saifullahi explained that the law would pave a way for the inclusion and development of PWDs in the state. The law has provided for the establishment of a board to oversee the affairs of PWDs and when established, the board would be given all the necessary assistance to make the law functional according to international standard.

Other content of the law maintained that no person with disability shall be discriminated against on the ground of his or her disability by any person or institution in any manner of circumstances. No person with disability shall be subjected to prejudice or negative segregation, including those based on gender, work, education, health, age, tradition and any other area of life. State, Local Government and private sectors must give special consideration to PWDs in social walfare, and other programs in line with the existing law. After highlighting major sections of the law he then informed that the draft of the law is available with them and waiting for the final version of the law from the state government. 

Barrister Nura Ahmad Muhammad, Executive Director MUFARKA Youth Development Association, made the last presentation. He looked into the prospects and challenges that the law might have face. He said that now that the Kano State Disability Law has been assented by the Governor of Kano State, the implementation of the Law is depending largely on the establishment of the Commission responsible for the implementation. However, we can make a look at the prospects and challenges with regards to the implementation of the law. He listed as follows: 

PROSPECTS:

• Protection for the rights and dignity of Person with Disabilities. The Law will ensure the protection of People with Disabilities in Kano.

• Legal framework. Disability Law is a legal document which will help in protecting the rights of People with Disabilities.

• Sustainability of Policy. Now that the Bill is passed into, there will be continuity in policies and programs related to People with Disabilities.

CHALLENGES:

• Proper implementation of the law. This can be achieved if the Commission created by the Law has been established.

• Funding of the Commission. For the Commission to function properly it has to be funded adequately. And all the fund allocated to the commission be released on time.

• Awareness Creation. Members of the public need to sensitized about the new Law. This will help in the successful implementation of the Law in Kano State.

At the end of the program, participants commented as follows

  • Malam Hamza Isa Baffa, PRO, Kanawa Educational Foundation for Disabled drew the attention of the participants to make good plan for follow ups.  He said that now election is coming, they can engage political aspirants as early as possible to see the actualization of the law
  • Malam Yahya A. Yahya, Chairman National Association of Physically Challenge People, Kano state chapter worried on how some clusters of PWDs in Kano are busy making contact to govern the commission when established. He said that until now there is no mechanism for implementation
  • Amina Abubakar Haruna urged the clusters of PWDs to make effort on sensitization and awareness creation to the wider public
  • Fatima Aminu, a physically Challenged participants requested CITAD to hold their hands and continue guiding them in order to ensure fully implementation of the law in the state
  • Safina Sani emphasized that many institutions in the state are not aware of the law, she said that with social media training the undergone at CITAD they will take that advantage and ensure proper enlightenment on social media

REPORT OF THE WOMEN INTERNET GOVERNANCE FORUM 2022 (WIGF2022) ORGANIZED BY
THE CENTRE FOR INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY AND DEVELOPMENT IN COLLABORATION
WITH NIGERIAN INTERNET GOVERNANCE FORUM HELD ON THE 14 TH OF SEPTEMBER, 2022 VIA
ZOOM

INTRODUCTION
On the 14 th of September, 2022 the Centre for Information Technology and Development held
the 4 th Women Internet Governance Forum as part of the 2022 Internet Governance Forum
activities. The event which is being held annually is part of the Nigerian Internet Governance
Forum (NIGF) pre-event activities., This year, the event theme was Making the Internet for
Livelihood, Love and Life: Tackling Gender and Child Abuse Online and was held online with a
limited physical attendance/participation in Kano. The theme was a well thought one, looking
at the global happenings around gender and child abuse online which has become a norm by
the perpetrators. Madam Marry Uduma, Coordinator, West African Internet Governance Forum
served as the Chairperson with Mrs. Ibukun Odusote, Chairperson, Ndukwe Kalu Foundation as
the Keynote Speaker while Jan Moolman, Co-Manager: Women’s Rights Programme,
Association for Progressive Communications served as the Guest Speaker.
Also, two technical sessions were held on Gender Violence Online and Child Protection Online.
At the two sessions, distinguished personalities and experts on Gender Based Violence and
Child Protection spoke and shared their experience and knowledge with the participants. The
first session which was titled Dealing with Gender Violence Online was chaired by Professor
Amina Kaidal of the University of Maiduguri while the speakers at this session were Zainab
Aminu, CITAD Technical Officer, Mrs. Martha Alade, Founder, Women in Technology and Msen
Nabo, Digital Media Associate at Connected Development.
The second session which focused on Dealing with Child Protection Online, had Hajiya Suwaiba
Muhammad Dankabo, Programmes Manager at ActionAid International as chair while Aminu
Adamu Naganye of the Star Newspaper, Harira Wakili, a Gender and Human Rights Activist and
Barrister Aisha Mahdi of Green Edge Attorneys served as the speakers.
OPENING SESSION
In his opening remarks, the Executive Director of CITAD, Y.Z Ya’u started by explaining the
purpose of this year’s WIGF during which he stated that, the essence of organizing the forum
was to encourage discussion, especially among women, on Internet governance and harvest
strategies for addressing issues that tend to reinforce the marginalization of women in the
digital space. Mr. Ya’u further stated that the WIGF focuses on two specific issues:

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  1. Issues of Gender Based Violence: in this regards, Mr. Y.Z said a lot of young women have
    suffered and still suffering from different kind of gender violence from people whose aim was
    to deter them from using the Internet. He also lamented that in some cases these young
    women face gender violence by their social media friends. Moreover, the Executive Director
    also said many women especially political aspirants are being abused and castigated on social
    media based on their gender, which contributes in furthering the political marginalization of
    women.
  2. Child Abuse Online: on this, the Executive Director stated that the Federal Government of
    Nigeria has set up panel to advise on a policy framework on how to address this issue. Speaking
    further on this, Ya’u hoped the forum would give the participants a chance to harvest strategic
    ideas that can help in shaping the policy, raise awareness and involve other stakeholders in
    trying to sanitize the digital ecosystem so that the women in particular can be able to make
    effective use of the Internet in the country, have access to educational materials and ability to
    use the Internet without being harassed or intimidated.
    Speaking about the importance of the Internet, Mr. Ya’u stated that Internet allows individuals
    and academics to make research when there is accessible and safe Internet. Fearing that some
    factors may hinder the proper use of the Internet, Ya’u advocated that factors which inhibit
    people from using the Internet needed to be removed and issue of affordability should also be
    addressed. He observed that women find it more difficult to access the Internet than men due
    to the economic disparity that exists between two.
    Moreover, Ya’u said the aims of the forum were to: improve user security competence among
    women, ensure women are able to use the Internet safely & secure their communications and
    that their privacy is well respected. At the end, he emphasized that “we must take Internet as a
    right for everybody in the country”
    Giving her remarks at the Forum, the West African Chair of the Internet Governance Forum,
    Mrs. Marry Uduma said in discussing about children and women on the net, we need to first
    understand that these category of people are already being marginalized and a huge gap exists
    in the society. She also stated that women and children are every day being abused and
    violence being meted on them online but little is being done to curtail the situation. Further,
    the West African Chair said, these categories needed to be encouraged and supported to use
    the Internet without being harassed and their rights not being violated in order to benefit from
    the ample opportunities the Internet presents. At the end she encouraged the participants to
    actively participate at the forum.
    The Keynote Speaker at the Forum, Mrs. Ibukun Odusote, Chairperson, Ndukwe Kalu
    Foundation mentioned that in the early days of the Internet, it has been a concern to the whole

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nation. Discussing on the responses to Gender Abuse Online and the multiple questions to
address bordering around gender violence online, the keynote speaker said, there is need to
develop campaigns messages to counter the misusers of the Internet and contributed to the
current processes of developing national strategy on child protection online. The speaker also
stated that the essence is to find ways on how to address physical and online abuse, and how to
protect vulnerable people from being harmed on the Internet. For this, she said more budget
need to be allocated to this area.
Mrs. Odusote went further to state that under United Nations Charter for Child Protection,
every child is expected to have a fundamental right to education, a right to health and a right to
livelihood, children are supposed to be allowed to speak and to be heard, but a lot of
constraints are preventing them from being able to fully access their fundamental rights
especially in Africa due to the cultural issues. Speaking about the ample advantages of the
Internet, Mrs. Odusote said if there was no Internet during the COVID-19 pandemic, many
people could have lost their lives. The Internet had also served as school for many children
during the lockdown, however, it also came with many disadvantages where some people used
it to abuse children.
Buttressing child abuse further, the keynote speaker said child and women abuse is a daily
reality in Nigeria; six out of ten children experience one form of abuse or the other, one in four
girls, and ten percent of boys have also been abused according to UNICEF data. She said
Technology when use in the right way has a potential to broaden opportunities and reduce the
level of abuse if there are proper guidance. The keynote speaker also lamented that many
opportunities are still not fully explored, but people tend to use the negative side of the
Internet, bullying others and amplifying hate speech on social media platforms.
On the negative consequences of child abuse on education, Mrs. Odusote said report has
shown that one in five children skipped school due to abuse, and of recent, kidnapping of
school children has also brought a lot of problem to children education in the country.
Discussing about the strategies to follow in preventing gender abuse and safety promotion
among children, the speaker said, for that, educational institutions must to be protected as well
as ensuring privacy of children online. For this, government must ensure all the necessary
regulations are in place and civil society organizations need to intensify advocacies to relevant
government agencies on the issues. Also teaching digital literacy and online safety skills will go
a long way in addressing the menace.
Moreover, there was need to articulate and introduce policies on how to prevent the abuses,
promote parental care education, enlightenment on online activities for the children and
women need to be properly educated. There is need for guidelines on installation of

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appropriate technology and software to prevent children falling into the traps of their abusers.
And creating trauma management techniques and advocacy for protecting young people online
will go a long way in finding the solution to the problem.
In her contribution, the Guest Speaker, Ms. Jan Moolman started her contribution by saying
that the journey for the improvement of women’s rights especially on the Internet is a difficult
one, looking at how the Internet impact the lives of women from the ICT to digital technology,
from the focus of ICT for Development from the 1990s to 2000s and even in the contemporary
discussion regarding privacy, disinformation, misinformation, censorship and hate speech, the
role of women in influencing, shaping and benefiting from digital technology is getting much
more grounded, and this recognition is largely due to the consistent work of organizations and
people in the global south that consistently call for inclusion, diversity and bringing gender
approaches to all the work that concerned human rights, both online and offline. Information
around gender based violence has been at the core of this work and has duly serve in bringing
different actors into the same room to find solution, the speaker added. She went further to
say that it took many years of lobbying and advocacy and work within women movement,
including building knowledge, research, campaigning, sharing experience and finally getting a
common language to get recognition on violation women experience when they are online. And
this work and persistency led to the 2018 adaptation of the UN Human Rights Council first ever
UN resolution on preventing and responding to violence against women and girls in digital
context and other different resolutions including the recent one in Africa has brought more
relief to women and girls in the continent.
Speaking on the issues APC and its partners pay more attention to when it comes to women
rights and digital technology, Ms. Moolman mentioned the followings:

  1. Joy, hope and Justice: according to the Guest speaker, for people who experienced
    violence online, there is hope they can find joy with regards to connection, information,
    solidarity, friendship, fun and even in some cases love. And for this, APC and its partners
    think it is important to encourage people to continue the work they are doing and to
    keep women safe and in a productive way on the digital space.
  2. Access: Even though women face many forms of violence online but there is need to
    ensure they have access to online platforms as easily and affordable as possible in order
    to carry out their normal activities. Emphasizing on how women are being marginalized
    when it comes to accessing the Internet, the speaker said, the 2019 ITBU report stated
    that globally only 48% of women are online and in the global south this is even lower at
    28%. This according her shows that there is wide gap between the connected and
    unconnected in the society. And unless we are able to address the issue of accessibility,
    many women and marginalized communities will remain in darkness and their voices
    silent.

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  1. Third is about companies that own social media platforms that are regulating contents
    that lacks clarity and consistency and which upon violate the rights of people without
    accountability or remedy. These companies are determining online discourses with
    focus on profits at the expense of users’ privacy and rights.
  2. The fourth is about how feminists’ movements online and offline are expanding and
    taking new forms. These groups are upon targeting for gender based violence online
    and it sometimes manifest to offline spaces.
    FIRST TECHNICAL SESSION: DEALING WITH GENDER VIOLENCE ONLINE
    CHAIR: Professor Amina Kaidal
    PANELISTS: Martha Alade, Zainab Aminu, Msen Nabo
    The first technical session was on Dealing with Gender Violence Online. The session which was
    chaired by Professor Amina Kaidal of the University of Maiduguri had Mrs. Martha Alade,
    Founder of Women InTechnology, Zainab Aminu, Gender Technical Officer, Centre for
    Information Technology and Development and Msen Nabo, Digital Media Associate at
    Connected Development.
    In her presentation, Zainab Aminu started by defining the Gender-Based violence which
    according to her refers to harmful acts directed at an individual based on their gender and
    rooted in gender inequality, the abuse of power and harmful norms.  Mss. Aminu said Gender-
    based violence (GBV) is a serious violation of human rights and a life-threatening health and
    protection issue, which is estimated that one in three women experiences sexual or physical
    violence in their lifetime.
    Zainab further stated that gender violence is not a new phenomenon; it has been existing since
    time immemorial which can include sexual, physical, mental and economic harm inflicted in
    public or in private and threats of violence, coercion and manipulation. Mss. Aminu also said
    gender violence can take many forms such as intimate partner violence, sexual violence, child
    marriage, female genital mutilation and so-called ‘honour crimes’ while its consequences are
    devastating and can have life-long repercussions for survivors. 
    Speaking about the impact of cyber violence, the speaker said it differs according to the victim’s
    gender. She gave an example with a study conducted by the Pew Research Centre which
    revealed that 38% of harassed women found their most recent experience with online
    harassment extremely or very upsetting, compared to only 17% of harassed men. The research
    further said that compared to male users, who tend to be more concerned about damage to
    their reputation, females are more likely to fear physical harm. This corresponds to the nature
    of online abuse these groups experience. Where men and boys are more likely to be victims of
    defamation and libel, women are more likely to be subjected to derogatory remarks or sexual

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images and threats, such as non-consensual pornography. She gave another example with
another study which found that female college students (age 18-24) who were victims of offline
stalking were three times more likely to be stalked online than their male counterparts. The
study also found that “while particular variables influence victimization risk among females,
virtually none of the variables in the analyses produced statistically significant relationships
with victimisation among males”.
Moreover, Zainab said key distinction between offline and online gender-based cyber violence
is that it is significantly more difficult “to permanently remove abusive or triggering content
from the Internet, which obliges the survivor to re-experience their victimisation all over again.”
This can exacerbate the psychological impacts of these forms of violence, such as flashbacks of
the incident and/or perpetrator, as well as increase the victim’s isolation period.
Discussing on the long term negative impact of gender violence online, Zainab said the greatest
impact that women experience is self-censorship. Women start censoring themselves online.
And that is what the abusers want. Another impact she said is that online violence attempts to
keep women from major sectors of the public sphere because public only take physical violence
seriously. The third impact is that some women leave the online platform [after being
harassed]. The forth impact which is being associated with online violence is public health issue
and the effects which results in physical, sexual, psychological or economic harm, and erodes
self-esteem.
Offering some solutions on how one can protect selves online, Zainab Aminu mentioned the
followings:
• Creating a strong password 
• Having different passwords for different accounts
• Downloading apps from authentication platforms and using two factor verification
• Logging out of accounts when not in use
• Not using public WIFI for sharing sensitive information 
At the end the speaker said, to stop gender violence online, there is need for public awareness
in order for people to understand it consequences which in many cases metamorphosed to
offline.
The second speaker, Mrs Martha Alade started by quoting the 1993 UN Declaration on the
Elimination of Violence against Women which defines ‘violence against women’ as an act of
gender-related violence (GBV) that results in, or is likely to result in, physical, sexual,
psychological or economic harm or suffering to women, including threats of such acts, coercion
or arbitrary deprivation of liberty, whether occurring in public or in private life [or online].

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Discussing on the different types of Gender Violence Online, Mrs Alade said it includes; Doxing
(leaking unauthorized info to public), Sexist abuse, Hate speech, Threat to free expression,
Threat to privacy, Impersonation, Defamation, Gender-based discriminatory memes,
Cyberstalking, Online misogyny etc. On the category of people that experience Gender
Violence, Mrs Martha said women and girls from marginalised communities are the easy
targets and their voices are often unheard. Mrs Alade also said, in most of the times, girls in
local communities are being violated but they are not even aware they are being violated. She
gave a scenario on a case they worked on which happened to a small girl in a community they
are working in and the girl was abused but due to lack of proper awareness about the issue she
was not even aware she was abused until she was examined then it was discovered the girl was
violated.
At the end, the speaker said, to stop gender violence the followings need to be considered

  1. Education in local languages
  2. Increase Sensitization/Advocacy – culturally responsive and relevant
  3. Consent and privacy
  4. Human Rights Enforcements by Public and Private
  5. Employ AI for Filtering offensive contents
  6. Content Enhancement
  7. Enable more support and help channels for victims
  8. Drive programs that amplify voices of the marginalized women and girls
  9. Support NGOs working around the subject

The third at this technical session, Miss Msen Nabo, Digital Media Associate at Connected
Development said appealing to governments to take the issue of GBV more serious is
something its advocates need to take beyond social media and also people’s attitudes need to
be changed. Mss. Nabo also stated that Gender Violence especially online is something that
people come across everyday but most of the times the victims ended up being punished by the
society. The gender activist said when victims of gender violence try to speak out against the
violence mated on them they usually receive silent feedback or they are advised to keep mute
in order to protect their image.
Mss. Msen went further to say that a clear example where government is an accomplice to this
act is the case of Kano State where the State House of Assembly refused to domesticate the
Child Protection Act even though the state is ranked among the states with high rate of gender

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based violence and child abuse. According her, this need intense advocacies and awareness
creation.
Speaking further on how people violate others on social media platforms, Mss. Nabo stated
that sharing someone’s pictures, address, videos without his/her consent are all forms of
violence online and these types of violence can turn to offline. And for this, she suggested that
advocacies and awareness creation need to be carried out in order to stop it.

SECOND TECHNICAL SESSION: DEALING WITH CHILD ABUSE ONLINE
CHAIR: Hajiya Suwaiba Muhammad Dankabo
PANELISTS: Barrister Aisha Mahdi, Harira Wakili, Aminu Adamu Naganye
The second session was moderated by Hajiya Suwaiba Y. Dankabo of ActionAid Nigeria and the
Three (3) distinguished personalities and experts on Gender Based Violence and Child
Protection spoke and shared their experience and knowledge with the participants.
A Gender and Internet Right Advocate, Harira Abdulrahman Wakili started her presentation
with explaining the ample opportunities the Internet presents to the young generations, Mss.
Wakili said nowadays Internet offers limitless opportunities to young people through
computers, smartphones, gaming consoles, and televisions, children learn, imagine and develop
their social networks. But she cautioned that these platforms need to be used in the most
appropriate way, where she stated that when these are used in the right way – and accessible
to all – the Internet has the potential to broaden horizons and ignite creativity. She also said
that with these opportunities come serious risks. Harira added that cyberbullying and other
forms of peer-to-peer violence can affect young people each time they log on to social media or
instant messaging platforms. Speaking about what children can be exposed to on the net, Miss
Wakili mentioned that when browsing the Internet, children may be exposed to hate speech
and violent content – including messages that incite self-harm and even suicide. According to
her, what happens online reflects the realities children face every day – at home, at school and
in their wider communities. In conclusion, Ms. Wakili emphasized that every child must be
protected from violence, exploitation and abuse on the Internet.
The Second speaker at this session was Barrister Aisha H. Mahdi of Green Edge Attorneys, who
emphasized that with the widespread use of the Internet, the advancement in technology and
the proliferation of Internet-enabled devices have created borderless and unlimited access to
information. Barr. Aisha said progress brings by the Internet has given the bad eggs in the
society the opportunities to exploit, put the children at risk, and make them vulnerable to
abuse. She said that there is an urgent need to balance the immense benefits of technology,
commercial interest and ensuring online safety of children with appropriate safeguards and
strong legal and institutional framework. Speaking on the safety on children online, the speaker

9

said there is a growing concern about the safety and privacy of children online which is amongst
the problems identified by relevant stakeholders in Nigeria.
Discussing about the Internet penetration in the country, Barrister Mahdi said as Internet
penetration increases, more children are connected to the grid, and this gives the children
better understanding of technology than the average adult. The speaker also mentioned that
new phones, smart toys, computers, and privileges for using a device give birth to new
responsibilities. Speaking about the exposure of the children to social media, Aisha stated that
the increased use of social media and online services allows children to share and consume
tremendous volume of personal information online. And at the same time the children use the
Internet as a means to learn, share and participate in civic life.
The legal practitioner added that in Nigeria, Section 37 of the 1999 Constitution and Section 8
of the Child Rights Act provide for children’s right to privacy. And Section 23 of the Cybercrimes
Act 2015 punishes child pornography. The Cybercrimes (Prohibition and Prevention) Act also
criminalizes cyberbullying and cyber stalking that could affect children. According to her,
though the Act punishes consumption of such contents and provides for other offenses, there is
no other specific legal guidelines or direction to protect the online safety and privacy of the
Nigerian child. Giving recommendations on how to safeguard children online, Barrister Aisha
Mahdi said:
i. Nigeria needs an online privacy protection law for children which will seek to protect
the personal information of children on websites, online services and applications
and it should be binding on online service providers collecting the personal data of
children to ensure consent management.
ii. Service providers should require the consent of the parents or guardians if the data
collection affects a child below the established age.
iii. There is need to digitalize the Nigerian courts and repeal some laws to ensure
efficient and quick judgments related to children abuses

Sharing his experience at the forum, a Kano based journalist, Aminu Adamu Naganye of The
Star Newspaper said Internet Service Providers and Electronic Service Providers need to ensure
their platforms are secure and do not put children at risk. He added that Service providers
should implement privacy and security by design and default. Service Providers have to do
more in creating and ensuring age-appropriate contents by managing content and dealing
effectively with abuse, misuse of their platforms and illegal contact with children.
Aminu Naganye said the legal framework alone cannot guarantee complete protection for the
Nigerian child. Excessive regulation will stifle children’s participation and access to the immense
benefits of the Internet. Speaking further, Mr. Naganye said there is need for increased digital
literacy for both children and their parents/guardians. According to him, providing this will
ensure children implement best privacy preferences, understand the implication of oversharing,
and have good online behavior. Another recommendations the journalist gave was that
parents/guardians should ensure they always install safety tools on their wards’ devices which
will protects children from inappropriate behavior and laying their hands on inappropriate

10

online contents. It will also prevents disclosure of personal information and assist parents and
guardians manage time spent on the devices.

CLOSING
Following the presentations, participants asked questions and made comments as well offered
specific recommendations that would help in making the Internet safer for both women and
children. This segment also allowed the presenters to clarify on some of the issues they raised
and positions advanced as well as father interrogated some of the proposed solutions to the
challenges that women and children face online. Participants agreed that there was need to
carry both the discussion and the proposed solutions offline to reach more people and
especially engage government and other stakeholders to respond to these challenges so that
both women and children would use the Internet safely and productive to ensure that it serves
their needs.
The organizers also promised to distill the recommendations and issue a communique as the
outcome of the Forum while exploring all possibilities to continue to engage both the
participants at this Forum as well as other stakeholders to mount a sustained public awareness
on the issues and an advocacy for action to address the problems,

REPORT OF A MONTHLY DIALOGUE ON ANTI CORRUPTION FIGHT IN NIGERIA ORGANIZED BY
THE CENTRE FOR INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY AND DEVELOPMENT (CITAD) ON THE 22 nd OF
SEPTEMBER, 2022 VIA ZOOM

The Centre for Information Technology and Development had on 22 nd September, 2022 under
its project on Mobilizing and Catalyzing Citizens Action for Accountable Election and
Governance in Nigeria supported by MacArthur Foundation held its Eighth Dialogue on Anti-
Corruption Fight in Nigeria with two of its sub-grantees; Abubakar Sadiq Mu’azu, Executive
Director, Center CATAI and Chioma Agwuegbo, Executive Director, TecHerNG while Dr. Kawu
Adamu Sule, PhD, Lecturer, Department of Sociology, Bayero University, Kano served as the
moderator. As it has become tradition in the Centre that every month it’s conducting the
dialogue, in the month of August, the Centre hosted Mu’azu Alhaji Modu, Executive Director,
Spotlight for Transparency and Accountability Initiative and Adeola Fayehum, Producer at
Keeping it with Adeola with Malam Haruna Adamu, Community Network Coordinator at CITAD
as the moderator.
The dialogue started with an opening remarks by the Executive Director of CITAD, Yunusa Zakari
Ya’u. Mr. Ya’u begin his remarks with aim of organizing the monthly dialogue where he stated
that; the aim of the dialogue is to give the sub-grantees under this project an opportunity to
regularly share their work with a wider audience in promoting accountability and fighting
corruption in Nigeria. He also mentioned that the dialogue is aimed at giving both the sub-
grantees and young people who have interest in the area an opportunity to discuss and share
ideas. He went further to state that CITAD has for many years been working in the area of
accountability and fighting corruption in Nigeria and empowering young people to demand for
good governance. Buttressing further on the essence of organizing the monthly dialogue, the
Executive Director said is to create a platform for the sub-grantees and those who have an
interest in the area to discuss ideas and learn from each other as corruption and lack of
accountability are the major obstacles towards the country’s growth and development”.
Opening the dialogue, the chairman of the September dialogue, Dr. Sule Rano said that Nigeria
needs transparent and accountable government and platforms like this one will helps in
ensuring government officials are put on their toes. He further stated that “accountable
election is key to good governance and democracy” and in a good democracy citizens must be
allowed to choose/elect their leaders. “This situation can only be achieved through accountable
and transparent election”. Dr. Sule buttressed.
The first speaker was Abubakar Mu’azu, Executive Director Centre for Advocacy and
Accountability Initiative. Mr. Mu’azu started his presentation by emphasizing the need for
accountable election and ensuring strict adherence to democratic process in electing leaders in
all positions and for citizens to understand their responsibilities in electing competent and
credible leaders. For the upcoming 2023 elections, Mr. Mu’azu shared with the participants the
efforts his organization is making in the area of empowering citizens with access to information
and amplifying their voices. The Executive Director stated that at Centre CATAI, they have been

creating awareness on the need for the citizens to participate in the elections, renew their
Permanent Voters’ Cards, the need to engage in the electoral processes; from primary to
secondary elections. He went further to state that even though Borno State has fewer people in
terms of PVC collection, but still citizens are campaigning and raising their voices in holding
government accountable due to intensify campaigns around the area by Civil Society Actors in
the state.
Speaking about the need for young people to actively engage and participate in the governance
and affairs of their country, the executive director said “young people need to advocate for the
inclusion of youth in leadership position and ensure their voice is heard for majority of the
voters in the country are youth”
Discussing on the activities they embark on, he said, Center CATAI has started shooting short
videos with young people and the essence of that is to change the perspective of the citizens
and how people can engage the government officials. According to him, the major target of the
campaign is young people because they constitute the highest number among all the other
constituency. On the tools they are using to reach their target audience, Mr. Mu’azu said they
mostly use Social Media because it is faster and easier to reach young people and encourage to
do what is good. Abubakar also explained that the focus of the campaign of recent is to
empower young people to have access to the right information, collect their PVCs and ensure
they elect the right leaders that will ensure accountability and transparency in governance,
enhancing and making quality education and serve the need of the citizens through different
initiative, advocacy, and engagement after the election.
Stressing the need of collaborative efforts, Mr. Mu’azu said to ensure the sustainability of such
kind of initiative and its success, citizens must accept it and take ownership of the process and
ensure sustained advocacy around having accountable government that will provide evidence
of democracy.
Also speaking at the dialogue, the Deputy Country Director of MacArthur Foundation, Oladayo
Olaide hailed CITAD for organizing and coordinating the discussion which he described as timely
and encouraging. Mr. Olaide went further to say that there is need to find ways on how to
include accountability into the discourse around 2023 general election and other important
issues that are significant to the election and try to rally out and speak out those issues. He also
advised and encouraged people working in this area to ensure as much as possible remain
neutral in the implementation of their activities
At the end of the dialogue participants asked questions and answers were provided by the
panelist.

GBV: CITAD trains 3rd phase of Gender Champions in Kano

The Centre for Information Technology and Development, CITAD has organized a Two days training for 20 youths, tagged ‘Gender Champions’ on the ways to address Gender-Based Violence in their various communities in Kano State.

The training, which is the third in the series of Gender Champions, took place in Kano with the aim to curtail the menace of GBV in the society.

Speaking to Journalists at the training, CITAD’s Gender Officer, Mrs. Zainab Aminu described Gender Violence as malicious and harmful act, posing serious threat to the general well-being of human societies, calling on stakeholders to collaborate with a view to fighting the scourge.

According to her, GBV is an unfortunate act where perpetrators directed at individuals or group of people.

She however said, the 20 Champions were selected from various communities in Kano state.

Participants during the training.

“Ambassadors selected will be empowered to conduct step-down training in their respective communities as well as making a powerful advocacy visit to key relevant stakeholders,”

“The champions also comprised of both men and women, including People Living With Disabilities.”

She noted that CITAD will continue sensitizing the general public against the scourge, stressing that, it will not rest on its oars until GVB is drastically reduced.

Zainab Aminu explained that the training is sponsored by Centre for Information and Development (CITAD) with support from Ford Foundation.

“This is the 3rd set of individuals being trained to advocate against GBV, the first and second batch, comprising of 40 individuals each.

Also speaking on behalf of Champions,  Rose Steven thanked CITAD for the training.

She stated readiness to step down what they learnt in their various communities.

Center hosts an interactive discussion with women to celebrate Girl-Child Day

A non-governmental organization, Centre for Information Technology and Development (CITAD) with support from Association for Progressive Communications (APC), has organized an interactive session with female journalists of eight (8) northern states to commemorate the International Day of the Girl Child.

During the session which took place at Sands and Duns Hotel Damaturu, Yobe state, CITAD Gender Officer, Zainab Aminu said the contribution of the girl child to society-building is invaluable, and it is evident across all major spheres, including education, politics, decision making, media, business and even much more.

Aminu added that despite the odds and unfavorable conditions, there is a lot to celebrate about the girl child this year. “They have been worthy ambassadors and we are proud of them all.” She stated.

She also called on stakeholders, parents and government to give adequate attention to girls’ education, as well as ensure a secure and favorable environment for their learning.

Speaking on the theme of this year’s celebration, ‘Our Time is Now, Our Rights, Our Future’ a Kano based journalist Hannatu Sulaiman Abba, said it was a call for the girl child to be free from all forms of biases and her rights restored.

Hannatu also urged mothers to pay attention to their girl child, teach them to develop the ability to think critically and ensure they have equal participation in decision making, either within the family or at the community level.

The female journalists were drawn from eight (8) northern states of Bauchi, Kano, Kaduna, Jigawa, Yobe, Gombe, Adamawa and Plateau.

International Day of the Girl Child is observed on October 11 every year and was first observed on October 11, 2012 by the United Nations. This year commemorates the 10th anniversary of the International Day of the Girl.

The day focuses attention on the need to address the challenges girls face and to promote girls’ empowerment and the fulfillment of their rights.

The theme of International Day of the Girl Child this year is: “Our time is now—our rights, our future.”

REPORT OF A MONTHLY DIALOGUE ON ANTI CORRUPTION FIGHT IN NIGERIA ORGANIZED BY THE CENTRE FOR INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY AND DEVELOPMENT (CITAD) ON THE 21ST OF APRIL, 2022 VIA ZOOM

The Centre for Information Technology and Development had on 21st of April, 2022 under its project on Mobilizing and Catalyzing Citizens Action for Accountable Election and Governance in Nigeria supported by MacArthur Foundation held its Fourth Dialogue on Anti-Corruption Fight in Nigeria with another three set of its sub-grantees; Jack Fidelis Vincent, Independ Journalist based in Maiduguri, Olumide Olaniyan of Lucidity of Absurdity (Poetry) and Fred Sam-Itepu, Head of Operation, Rise Networks while Dr. Kabiru Sufi Sa’id, Principal Lecturer, Kano State College of Education and Preliminary Studies chaired the Dialogue. As it has become tradition in the Centre that every month it’s conducting the dialogue, in the month of March, the Centre hosted Danlami Nmodu, mni, Publisher NewsDiary Online, Bikiya Graham-Douglas, Executive Director, Beeta Network and Dr. Tunde Akanni, Lecturer at the Department of Mass Communication, Lagos State University with Clement Adebayo as the moderator

The dialogue started with an opening remarks by the Executive Director of CITAD, Engineer Yunusa Zakari Ya’u. Engineer Ya’u begin his remarks with aim of organizing the monthly dialogue where his stated that; the aim of the dialogue is to give the sub-grantees under this project an opportunity to regularly share their work with a wider audience in promoting accountability and fighting corruption in Nigeria. He also mentioned that the dialogue is aimed at giving both the sub-grantees and young people who have interest in the area an opportunity to discuss and share ideas. Engineer Ya’u went further to state that CITAD has for many years been working in the area of accountability and fighting corruption in Nigeria and empowering young people to demand for good governance. Buttressing further on the essence of organizing the monthly dialogue, the Executive Director said is to create a platform for the sub-grantees and those who have an interest in the area to discuss ideas and learn from each other as corruption and lack of accountability are the major obstacles towards the country’s growth and development”. 

Moreover, Malam Ya’u lamented on the set back fighting corruption is recording in the country where he gave an example with presidential pardon granted to two convicted former governors of Plateau and Benue States after being tried and found guilty of stealing public funds while serving as governors in their states. At the end he urge the participants not relent on their efforts in the fight against corruption as it takes time to rid corruption out of the society.  

Speaking on the different tools and mediums he utilizes in demanding for accountability and fighting corruption, Mr. Jack Vincent said in Maiduguri he used to organized small round table meetings to hear the opinions of people on how they perceive corruption and the best way to tackle it, from the opinions gather, he organizes radio programs including phone in where people call to give their own contributions and air their grievances. Also, Mr. Vincent used to do Vox Fox where he sample the opinions of the public on how corruption and bad governance is affecting their lives. Other activities conducted by this sub-grantee include documentaries. In the documentaries, Mr. Fidelis focuses more on capital projects that are poorly executed such as hospitals, roads, schools etc. in the state. This, he said they aired on their live radio program and also share on social media platforms such as Facebook and Twitter.

On his part, Mr. Olumide said their work is targeting at people at grassroots where they are enlightening them about the effect of corruption through the use of poetry. He said what they normally do is to ask people questions on the post elections issues like what their representatives are doing to better their lives. Also, Mr. Olaniyan said they organize mobile dramas where they went to local markets in Abuja in collaboration with markets officials and perform dramas on corruption. In the drama, Mr. Olaniyan said they are using four languages such as Hausa, Igbo, Yoruba and Pidgin English. Another tactic they explore is reading poems to community people on anti-corruption and accountability. In this case, he said they allow the community people to read the poems themselves in order to internalize and make the fight against corruption a habit. At the end he stated that they are sharing the messages to larger audiences using social media platforms like Facebook to popularize the messages.

Moreover, the final speaker at the dialogue, Mr. Fred discussed mainly on the application they created in order to track corruption and fake news in the area of fighting corruption in the country called “Run Am”. He said, the application is created to mobilize citizens against corruption and discuss issues of accountability in Nigeria. Speaking further, Mr. Fred said, the application is trained to source information on corruption and election from credible sources by tracing the authenticity of images used like where they have been taken, who took them and what time they were taken. At the end, this speaker said using technology to fight corruption is the best and most efficient way to rid the corruption out of our society and instill good governance in the minds of Nigerians. 

At the end, some participants made comments about the topic in discussion. One of the commentators at the dialogue stated that “the anti-corruption institutions in the country are just making fool of themselves considering the action of the president and his cabinets most especially with the recent pardon of the convicted governors”.   

 

 

Report of Monthly Dialogue on Public Education on COVID19 Vaccine Project

 

On Tuesday 1st March, 2022 the Centre for Information Technology and Development (CITAD) organized a virtual dialogue to deliberate issues around slow uptake of the COVID19 vaccine. The dialogue which took place via the Zoom platform hosted two public health experts-Dr. Hassan Shuaibu Musa, Principal Medical Officer and Lecturer at Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University, Bauchi and Dr. Ma’awuya Aliu as speakers, Hon. Jafar Mohammed Zuru, Commissioner, Kebbi State Ministry of Health gave a keynote address while Dr. Mainasara Yakubu Kurfi, the Head, Department of Mass Communications, Bayero University Kano served as moderator. 

The one hour thirty minutes virtual event titled “Discussing COVID19 Vaccine Uptake Series 2.0” began with goodwill message from Hon. Jafar  Muhammed Zuru, Commissioner of Health Kebbi State who was represented by Haruna Abdullahi, Director Immunization and Disease Control in the Ministry, in the message he commended CITAD for organizing the dialogue adding that it is a timely effort as it brought qualified stakeholders to deliberate on the vaccination issue, he urged participants from various states to listen to the speakers with interest and make use of the strategies they will share during the dialogue. 

Hindrances and factors responsible for slow uptake of the vaccine, hesitancy or non acceptance of the vaccine shared by the speakers during the dialogue included the following:

  1. Fear of side of adverse effect of the vaccine
  2. Healthcare workers vaccine hesitancy 
  3. Lack of national policy on vaccine administration
  4. Lack of targeted communication strategy 
  5. Lack of risk communication assessment mechanism and response strategy 
  6. Unavailability of vaccines in some locations 
  7. Lack of sufficient credible information on vaccine efficacy 
  8. Societal perception on the virus and vaccine
  9. Circulation of false narratives on the vaccine on social media 
  10. Cultural and traditional beliefs on the vaccine
  11. Poor vaccine administration and delivery 
  12. Poor public knowledge COVID19 asymptomatic patients  

 It noted was during the dialogue that hesitancy of the vaccine by healthcare workers is heavily and negatively impacting the vaccination exercise, it was also learned that for example in Bauchi state only 11% of the state’s healthcare workers took the vaccine, the concern therefore was how would the public have trust and confidence in the vaccine if healthcare workers are also reluctant to take it? Another issue raised during the dialogue was that many people COVID19 patients are asymptomatic and the public justify their misconception on the virus, for example again in Bauchi state 78% of COVID19 patients were asymptomatic. After intense deliberation on the above areas, questions and comments by the dialogue participants, the speakers recommended the following:

  1. Taking the vaccine should be made mandatory for all healthcare workers in order to boost confidence of the public on the vaccine. 
  2. States should develop information dissemination and communication strategy to constantly engage the public on the vaccine. By extension it was recommended that live phone-in radio programmes should consistently be aired to provide detailed and sufficient information to listeners in local languages, respond to questions they have as well as use the programme to restrategize the information and communication chain. 
  3. There is the need to have a national and state policy on vaccination, the policy should take into cognizance the contexts and peculiarities of different communities. 
  4. Vaccination authorities should leverage mass gatherings-social, religious, traditional, etc with COVID19 vaccine.
  5. There is the need to amplify positive testimonies on the vaccine particularly testimonies of people the public will believe and trust. 
  6. There is the need to have a functional risk communication strategy
  7. States should embark on mass campaign on the mainstream media, social media and local or traditional gatherings.   
  8. Information and communication approach should target behavioural change

CITAD Presents Prize To Winners of Report A Projects Competition

By Rabiu Musa

HOTPEN – The Centre for Information Technology and Development (CITAD) has presented prizes to winners in the 3rd round of its ‘Report a Project Competition’.

The Centre said the champions were honored to encouraged them continue contributing their best for the sustainable growth and development of the society.

The program, according to the Centre is in support from MacArthur Foundation and is targeted at encouraging students from tertiary institutions to report abandoned or poorly executed projects in their respective communities.

In his remarks, the Executive Director of the Centre Dr. Y.Z Ya’u said the project was in line with the pursuit for a collective action to demand accountability from the government at all levels.

The Executive Director who was represented by the Centre’s Campaigns and Communications Officer, Mal. Ali Sabo explained that the idea is an accelerated step to holding governments accountable for its actions in the spirit of transparency as a critical element of good governance and improving citizens’ livelihood.

The winner of the competition, Mr. Taneem Garga, from Plateau state was presented with a Computer, while the first runner-up Ishaq Abdullahi Shehu from Kano Municipal got Huawei Nova and the second runner-up Ridwan Garba from Gwale local L.G, Kano state was presented with Huawei Y6 Pro.

REPORT OF THE THIRD DIALOGUE ON ANTI-CORRUPTION FIGHT IN NIGERIA ORGANIZED BY THE CENTRE FOR INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY AND DEVELOPMENT ON THE 15 TH OF MARCH, 2022 VIA ZOOM

As part of its continued efforts to contribute to the fight against corruption in Nigeria, the
Centre for Information Technology and Development has instituted a monthly dialogue on anti-
corruption fight in the Nigeria where it is inviting its sub-grantees of its project on Mobilizing
and Catalyzing Citizens’ Action for Accountable Election and Governance in Nigeria which is
being supported by MacArthur Foundation. This month dialogue was held on the 15 th of March,
2022 with Bikiya Graham-Douglas, Singer, Actress and Chief Executive Officer, Beeta
productions, Dr. Tunde Akanni, lecturer, Department of Mass Communications, Lagos State
University and Danlami Nmodu, mni, a veteran journalist and publisher, NewsDiary Online
Based in Abuja, while the webinar was moderated by Clement A. Oloyede, Bureau Chief, Daily
Trust Newspaper, Kano


The aim of the dialogue is to give the sub-grantees under this project an opportunity to
regularly share their work with wider audience in promoting accountability and fighting
corruption in Nigeria. The dialogue is also aimed at giving both the sub-grantees and youth who
have interest in the area an opportunity to discuss and share ideas.
In the previous month, the Centre featured Mustapha Bulama of DailyTrust, Mu’azu Alhaji
Modu of Spotlight for Transparency and Accountability Initiative and Joshua Alabi of KINANSO
Concept while Danladi Lawanti of the Department of Mass Communication, Ahmadu Bello
University Zaria chaired the Dialogue. While in the January Dialogue, the dialogue hosted
Abubakar Sadiq Mu’azu, Executive Director, Center for Advocacy, Transparency and
Accountability Initiative and Chioma Agwuegbo, Executive Director, TechHerNG and chaired by
Mukhtar Modibbo of Connected Development.
In his welcome remarks at the dialogue, the Executive Director of the Centre for Information
technology and Development who was represented by the Senior Program Officer, Malam
Haruna Adamu reiterated the Centre’s committed to the fight against corruption in the country.
Malam Adamu said CITAD has for many year been in the forefront in the fight against
corruption and building the capacity of other Civil Society Organizations and Community Based
Organizations in this area. He went further to state that the Centre is also conducting other
activities in order to ensure everyone is part of this fight like training young people on using
social media for accountability and engaging students to report abandoned projects in their
communities which is also part of instituting the culture of holding their representatives
accountable in the country.
Sharing her experience at the dialogue, Miss Bikiya said corruption has been embedded in our
system and it’s the number one enemy that is thwarting the development of the country. She
also stated that abuse of public finance system is on the rise in the country. Discussing about

the remedy to the situation, Miss Graham-Douglas said ensuring accountability starts with one
self. In talking about her activities and how they are creating awareness on the area, she
mentioned that from her part, she is using films to enlighten the general public most especially
women about the need to start demanding for accountability from their representatives.
The second speaker at the dialogue, Dr. Tunde Akanni who is conducting research on the level
of corruption at tertiary institutions shared with the participants that the level of corruption in
tertiary institutions is so high to the extent that lecturers and other non-academic staff are
extorting students seeking for admission into the universities. Mr. Akanni also stated that sex
for admission and marks was also complained by some of the students who participated at the
research conducted. To balance the claims made by some of the interviewed students, Dr.
Tunde said during the first validation of the research with some selected staff of some of the
tertiary institutions, it was disclosed that it is of course true students are going through
different kind of extortion ranging from financial to sexual harassment. Lamenting on the
situation, Dr. Akanni mentioned that the major factor contributing to this menace is lack of
strong laws and punishment that will serve as deterrent to other perpetrators or those that
want commit similar offence. At the end, he called on the school authorities, civil society
organizations, media and other relevant agencies to work assiduously in protecting students
more especially female students in the country.
In his contribution, the last speaker at the discussion, Mallam Danlami Nmodu emphasized on
the need for journalists to adhere to the journalistic ethics and best practices. He lamenting
that many of the journalists nowadays are in the habit of extorting and blackmailing people,
given an example with the publisher of Peoples Gazette who was exposed recently on such act.
He went further to state that as watch dog in the society, media practitioners have to be clean
and up hold the best standard of practice in the their work in order to maintain their respect in
the eye of the public.
The webinar was attended by over 20 participants from across the country.

Report of Sensitization Lecture On Gender-Based Violence at Saadatu Rimi College of Education Kano

Every March 8, Nigerian women join the rest of the world to celebrate the International Women’s Day (IWD). In Kano state, A Non-Governmental Organization working to Prevent Gender-Based Violence in Kano,

the Centre for Information Technology and Development (CITAD), organized a one-day sensitization lecture on Gender-based violence to the students of Kano State College of Education (Sa’adatu Rimi College of Education), to commemorate the 2022 IWD.
International Women’s Day, celebrated annually on March 8 – is a day that commemorates the social, political and economic achievements of women as well as creating awareness on issues that affect women and girls and to proffer solutions to them.
The theme for this year’s International Women’s Day is: “Gender equality today for a sustainable tomorrow.”

This year’s campaign is represented by the #BreakTheBias hashtag and calls on people towork towards a world that is equitable, inclusive, and free from bias and discrimination against women.
Zainab Aminu who is Gender Officer of CITAD, presented a paper titled “Concept of Gender-Based Violence” she congratulated women all over the world on the day, reminded them of the need to use the occasion to create awareness on sexual and gender based violence issues with the aim of finding a lasting solution.
According to her, the sensitization lecture was a call to action for all stakeholders on the mission, to eliminate all forms of gender-based violence in Kano state.
It is important to raising awareness and sensitization, prioritizing access to safe learning environment,and changing negative norms and harmful beliefs about gender roles that reinforce the ugly practice, Zainab said.
She added that Gender-based violence is a universal problem, and the solution to the problem requires awareness, sensitization and all stakeholders to work together in addressing the problem.
Miss Zainab went further to say the scale of sexual gender-based violence, violence against women and
girls and discrimination is alarming. The spike, pattern, trends, and the consequences of these forms of
violence impact negatively on individuals, families, communities, and the state in general".
On his remarks, the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) Boss, Kano Zonal office, Mal. Abdullahi
expressed that people who experience gender violence suffered from different human rights violations –
like right to life, freedom from torture and degrading treatment, freedom from discrimination and the
right to safety and security.
He added that NHRC is using a range of innovative measures to defend the rights of women and girls in
its campaign to end sexual and gender based violence in Nigeria.

Abdullahi added that in promoting awareness, the NHRC is supporting the production of ‘State of
Human Rights’, a weekly television programme that covers key human rights issues and progress made
so far in Nigeria, as well as increasing their presence on social media. View clips from ‘State of Human
Rights’ on Twitter.
He also urged parents, religious institutions, community members and the media to encourage victims
to speak out on cases of abuse or violence.
Dr. Bashir Sani, who is the Director Guidance and Counseling of the college said that Sa’adatu Rimi
College of Education had well-articulated and clear rules and regulations.
He explained that the rules and regulations provided an environment that was safe, non-discriminatory,
non-exploitative and free from harassment and sexual assault.
He also urged the participants to use the knowledge learned during the session and give same to their
communities.
On his part, the Dean, students affairs of the College, Malam Rabi'u Muhammad said that the college is
ready to partner with CITAD to sensitize students on all matters pertaining to women and young girls.
He also asked CITAD to re-organize such sensitization lecture next year in the college.
Muhammad, also commended CITAD for organizing the sensitization lecture, saying, it was timely and
college management are committed to partnering with centre for information technology and
development towards achieving the common goal.
Students from different departments of the college attended the sensitization lecture, asking questions
and making contributions to the presentation.

PICTURES FROM THE EVENT

NHRC Zonal Director, Making his speech.

Cross-view of participants

Centre Trains Kano Youths On Use of Social Media for Accountability

By Rabiu Musa

HOTPEN – The Centre for Information Technology and Development (CITAD), has organized a 2-days training for selected youths from Kano South Senatorial District on the use of Social Media for Accountability in Rano local government area of Kano state.

The training, themed; “Social Media for Accountability”, allowed the participants to acquire relevant skills on the use of social media for accountability and the areas of deploying various platforms for networking, political participation, holding leaders accountable, content creation, entrepreneurship, and a host of others.

Participants

During the training, the Centre’s Campaigns and Communications Officer, Mal. Ali Sabo who doubled as the resource person took the participants with lessons on social media best practices within the purview of global digital trends.

The participants also gained knowledge and learned the basic rudiments on the best practices on building and maintaining an online presence for monetary gain with an emphasis on YouTube. Mal. Ali has also taught the participants how to create powerful and captivating written and visual content, which according to him, enhances effective communication, particularly for businesses with their target audience.

The participants were also equipped and exposed to the various features of social media platforms and their usage, techniques of social media engagement, and how to lend a voice on governance by leveraging the technology and its trends.

In his remarks, the CITAD’s Admin and Documentation Officer, Mal. Buhari Abba, who is also the Project Officer, Journalists for Accountability said the Centre organized the 2-days training to educate the youth on the effective use of social media to seek accountability as well as for the improvement of personal and professional development.

A participant at the training, Mukhtar Lawal Abdullahi Rano commended the Centre for organizing the training which, according to him, has exposed them to the use of social media Instrumentalities to hold leaders accountable and improve their lives.

Another Participant, Binta Wada Abubakar acknowledged the giant stride of the organizers. She said the training has positively impacted her life with first-hand knowledge on how to use social media to demand accountability from leaders and participate actively in any issue of national importance on social media.