By Sunday Elom
The Corporate Accountability and Public Participation Africa (CAPPA) has announced six journalists who emerged winners of its Journalism Fellowship for Investigative Reporting on Trans Fat.
The winners of the second cohort of the fellowship which starts with orientation on April 12, 2022 include Temitope Bademosi (TVC), Sunday Elom (Orient Daily Newspaper), Dare Akogun (Sobi FM), Felicia Dairo (Premium Times), Nkoli Omhoudu (AIT), and Adesola Ikulajolu (Independent Journalist).
Congratulating the winners, the Executive Director of CAPPA, Akinbode Oluwafemi, in a statement explained that the purpose of the fellowship is to elicit conversations and deep dive into key issues relating to trans-fat consumption, elimination of trans fat and the health of Nigerians.
The Director stated that “the fellowship will equip the journalists with the necessary skills and access to information to aid their reporting on issues concerning trans fatty acids,” adding that the journalists will also receive training on researching and finding resources for an investigative report.
According to Oluwafemi, “the fellows were judged based on the quality of the presentation of their pitches, the ingenuity of their ideas and the relevance of their pitches to the campaign objectives.”
“As part of the fellowship, the journalists will produce and publish in depth pieces on trans fat around any of trans-fat content in food, trans-fat and wellbeing, industry players, food labeling and regulation and distinguishing trans-fat enhancing cardiovascular diseases and implications of the treatment of such in Nigeria.
“CAPPA, through the fellowship, aims to build the capacity of the Nigerian media to report on trans fat use, health risk and its regulation from an informed perspective in line with the World Health Organization’s recommended standards for countries to follow,” Oluwafemi stated.
The CAPPA journalism fellowship for investigative reporting on trans fat supported by the Global Health Advocacy Incubator (GHAI), is also meant to improve public awareness of trans fat and global best practices.