By Oluwatope Lawanson
The Executive Director of the International Press Centre (IPC), Lanre Arogundade, has commended the workplace policy of the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), describing it as healthy and worthy of emulation. Arogundade gave the commendation at the 2025 ReportHer Award ceremony held on Friday at the Amber Residence, Ikeja GRA, Lagos.
NAN emerged winner of the Excellence in Pro-Women Workplace Policy category. The event was organised by Nigeria’s first indigenous gender-based media outlet, Women Radio 91.7FM.
According to the organisers of the ReportHer Awards, the honour is in recognition and celebration of media organisations that prioritise women’s representation and empowerment. The ReportHer Award was a collaborative effort of Women Radio 91.7 and the Wole Soyinka Centre for Investigative Journalism, with support from the Ford Foundation.
Arogundade, who was one of the three judges, said some of NAN’s existing pro-women workplace policies – such as the six months’ maternity leave and a conducive work environment – earned the agency the award.
The veteran journalist also urged other media organisations to emulate the NAN policy and called on journalists to adopt gender inclusion as a national agenda. He also encouraged journalists to support the Reserved Seats for Women Bill, citing data showing that women constituted almost 47 per cent of voters.
Speaking during the award ceremony, the Chief Executive Officer of Women Radio, Toun Okewale-Sonaiya, urged editors to use their influence to give women equal visibility.
According to her, women make up half of Nigeria’s population but remain underreported. She also encouraged newsrooms to intentionally feature more women and make use of existing databases of female experts.
The Ford Foundation representative, Onyinye Onyemobi, stressed that dismantling harmful norms should start with the media, and commended Women Radio for championing fair representation. Radio presenter, Funmi Bamgbala, noted that women appeared in only 21 per cent of news content, stressing that gender balance strengthened credibility and public trust.
A facilitator, Chinenye Anaemena, urged the media to represent diverse groups of women – including women with disabilities, hijab-wearing women and nuns – and recommended BBC-style gender-sourcing audits.
NAN reports that the programme ended with the ReportHer Awards 2025, celebrating journalists and media organisations promoting balanced storytelling about Nigerian women. Other award categories and winners included: Female Leadership Representation, won by FRCN; Inclusive Advocacy and Reportage, won by BONews; GBV Reporting Excellence, won by Premium Times.
In his response, NAN’s Deputy Editor-in-Chief, Mr Kevin Okunzuwa, thanked the organisers for the gesture, noting that it would further encourage reporters and media management to become more responsive to issues of safety in the workplace.
He dedicated the award to the memory of former NAN Managing Director, Mrs Oluremi Oyo, who pioneered the favourable pro-women workplace policy for the staff.
The award ceremony was attended by male editors, media leaders and gender advocates, who reaffirmed their commitment to improving how Nigerian women are represented in the media sector.
Source: NAN