By Stellamaries Amuwa, Abuja
The Nigeria Association of Women Journalists (NAWOJ), FCT Chapter, has expressed interest in partnering with the Chinese Embassy to enhance the capacity of its members and promote media exchange between Nigeria and China.
This was made known by the NAWOJ FCT Chairperson, Bassey Ita Ikpang, during a courtesy visit to the Chinese Embassy on Tuesday in Abuja.
Bassey highlighted the association’s achievements in advocacy, awareness creation, and capacity building, particularly in areas such as maternal health, women’s rights, and girl-child education.
She said, “In the spirit of mutual partnership, NAWOJ FCT is committed to supporting the Chinese Embassy through, responsible, balanced, and development-focused media engagement, amplification of Embassy-supported initiatives, through our extensive media networks. Grassroots community outreach, especially among women and youth, Cultural exchange and people-to-people diplomacy through storytelling and media coverage.
“NAWOJ FCT believes strongly in partnerships built on mutual respect, shared values, and common development goals. We are confident that collaboration between NAWOJ FCT and the Chinese Embassy will further strengthen women’s empowerment, media development, and people-to-people relations between Nigeria and China. We look forward to further discussions and sustained engagement.”
Responding, Dung Hairong, Counselor, Embassy of China informed that China and Nigeria has enjoyed very good relationship
“The Nigerian media is very friendly and very cooperative to China and also to the Chinese but still, misconception, misunderstanding and sometimes wrong representation and one sided story. We had this Global leaders on women. Which was held in October last year in Beijing we invite the head of state and from organization, government officials and women affairs from different countries to Beijing and to further advancing the women cause empowerment and how to protect the women and girls rights.
” It was a very successful meeting a convention. On that women Global leaders meeting, president XI jinping outlined like five core measures in supporting women cause and the women development and also covers the interests of women and girls.
She further revealed the five concrete measures as; to donate 10 million USD to women. The second one is earmark 100 million USD to fund to projects with the women and girls as the priority beneficiaries and to launch a thousand small and livelihood projects for women and girls throughout the world and to invite 50 thousand women to China for exchange and training program.
“That is what the Chinese government would like to do in the next five years. It’s it is not to be done in one year but five years in the next five years. we could collaborate and make good use of these five core measures. We can collaborate on how we can make good use of this 50,000. Fifty thousand in five years, which is the divided by 5 years. It would be 10000 each year. So yeah, it’s across the world but I think for Nigerian women. Especially women journalists, I think there are quite good chance for you to participate in the project. “
