Propcom+ Equips Nigerian Media with Skills for Accurate Climate-Smart Agriculture Reporting

 

Yola, Nigeria – September 9, 2025

 

To counter the severe threat climate change poses to Nigeria's food security and agricultural livelihoods, Propcom+ has convened a three-day capacity-building workshop for journalists on reporting Climate-Smart Agriculture (CSA).

The initiative responds to recent findings, including an International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI, 2023) study, which confirms that climate change negatively impacts all agricultural households but has a disproportionately severe effect on Nigeria's poorest communities.

Recognizing the media’s critical role as a conduit of public information, the workshop brought together journalists from leading national and regional outlets. The training was designed to combat misinformation and build a core of knowledgeable media advocates capable of accurately communicating the value of CSA practices, which are essential for boosting productivity, improving farmer incomes, and building national climate resilience.

Dr. Adiya Ode, Country Representative & Political Director at Propcom+, while welcoming participants talked the imperative of the engagement in achieving its objectives, ‘ Propcm+ is looking to transform rural economy and increase resilient to impact of climate change.’

She also highlighted the importance of partnership with relevant stakeholders especially the media in putting out the narratives on climate smart agriculture, ‘the media are the voices. The media are the ones who would carry information, they influence popular perception, they would share information on those practices that are exacerbating climate change; share information on technology that is available to help rural population or small holder farmers/SMEs. 

The media share information on the help available the way we need t change to build resilient against climate change.’ She emphasized also, the training would help the media in writing technical pieces, investigation, research which shape opinion of the impact climatic crisis on agriculture.

The workshop, also featured sessions facilitated by other technical leads while Adam Alqali, a media consultant facilitated the interactive exercises, which combined expert insights with practical exercises, including interactive role-playing and group discussions, to enhance skills in human-angle storytelling and data-driven reporting.

Participants gained a deeper understanding of Propcom+'s work in agricultural transformation and committed to using their platforms to amplify climate-smart practices.

Propcom+ is an eight-year (2023-2030), rural and agricultural market development programme supporting climate-resilient and sustainable agriculture and forestry that benefits people, climate and nature.

Propcom+ aims to transform Nigeria’s rural economy by addressing environmental, social, and economic challenges in the country’s food and land-use system.

Its targets are:

(i)               Increasing productivity, improving nutrition and food security

(ii)             Enhancing climate resilience, pursuing lower emissions, and protecting and restoring nature, and

(iii)           Helping tackle some of Nigeria’s underlying drivers of conflict and insecurity.

The project for the period further hopes to, increase the incomes and climate resilience of 3.79 million poor and vulnerable people in Nigeria, 50% of whom will be women, through a “3Ps” approach of interlinked components:

a.     P1: Scaling-up a focused basket of Proven climate-smart interventions around agricultural and primary processing / storage practices and models to get these adopted by millions of poor and vulnerable smallholder farmers and small-scale entrepreneurs.

b.     P2: Building markets by developing and Piloting new business models that improve productivity, enhance resilience to climate change, reduce emissions, and improve nutrition outcomes.

c.      P3: Enabling Policies that support a strengthened enabling environment for sustainable food and land-use system.

At the close of the training, participants left with one thing in mind; a shared vision that by empowering journalists with knowledge, Propcom+ is fostering a network of informed advocates who can inspire the widespread adoption of climate-smart practices, leading to improved livelihoods and a more sustainable future for Nigerian agriculture.

Aaron Isaac, Hicia News