Special Reports

Welcome to Special Reports — in-depth analyses and reflections from the Centre for Development Communication. These reports go beyond routine updates, offering critical insights, evidence, and narratives that shape policy, practice, and the future of development communication.

Strengthening Cultural and Religious Pluralism in North-Central Nigeria through Participatory Communication Approaches: Evidence from Bokkos and Apa Communities

Leave a Comment / Special Reports /

My baseline research explored how cultural and religious pluralism in North-Central Nigeria can be strengthened through participatory communication approaches. Field evidence from Benue and Plateau States demonstrates that when communities actively participate in dialogue and decision-making on issues affecting them, peaceful coexistence is more achievable—despite differences in cultural identities, belief systems, and religious practices. In […]

Strengthening Cultural and Religious Pluralism in North-Central Nigeria through Participatory Communication Approaches: Evidence from Bokkos and Apa Communities Read More »

Know the Difference: Participatory Development vs Participation in Development

Leave a Comment / Special Reports /

This clarification has become necessary because many people — including practitioners — often confuse participatory development with participation in development. Yet, the distinction between the two is fundamental to how we design and implement truly inclusive and effective interventions. During a recent field visit to six rural communities across Lapai, Paikoro, and Wushishi (Niger State),

Know the Difference: Participatory Development vs Participation in Development Read More »

Tinubu’s Neoliberal Economic Model Will Not Lift Nigerians Out of Poverty

Leave a Comment / Special Reports /

President Bola Tinubu’s economic agenda is built on a neoliberal foundation, rooted in the belief that free markets alone can drive growth and prosperity. But for a country like Nigeria, marked by mass poverty, weak infrastructure, and deep inequality, this model is not only unsuitable, it is dangerous. Tinubu’s alignment with neoliberalism is clear. His

Tinubu’s Neoliberal Economic Model Will Not Lift Nigerians Out of Poverty Read More »

When Communication Becomes Just PR: Development Fails

Leave a Comment / Special Reports /

For 15 years, I’ve led communication efforts across top NGOs in Nigeria. Over this time, one truth has become impossible to ignore: Development communication is dangerously misunderstood and undervalued. I have published over a dozen empirical studies on communication theory and practice in respected local and international journals. I currently support three PhD researchers in

When Communication Becomes Just PR: Development Fails Read More »

From Noise to Impact: The Shift NGOs Must Make

Leave a Comment / Special Reports /

One of the key challenges to Development Communication is that a greater number of NGOs still consider “awareness campaigns” the ultimate achievement. When they erect billboards, air radio jingles, and attain social media trends, they conclude they have achieved meaningful, measurable impact. What needs to be known by a greater number of NGOs is that

From Noise to Impact: The Shift NGOs Must Make Read More »

Kogi Geregu School — Where Hope Meets Broken Walls

Leave a Comment / Special Reports /

Every day, kids walk through these cracked walls and missing roofs—not because the school is abandoned, but because their dreams won’t wait. Imagine sitting in a classroom with no roof over your head, bare floors under your feet, and no science lab in sight. This is reality for students here in Geregu, Ajaokuta LGA, Kogi

Kogi Geregu School — Where Hope Meets Broken Walls Read More »

Field Notes from Participatory Communication with Rural Women Farmers

Leave a Comment / Special Reports /

During our recent participatory communication engagements in Lapai, Paikoro, Wushishi (Niger State) and Otukpo, Gboko, Oshongo (Benue State), spanning six rural communities in North-Central Nigeria, one message came through loud and clear: Rural women farmers prefer female agricultural extension workers. They shared that: Female extension workers can easily enter their homes, sit with them, and

Field Notes from Participatory Communication with Rural Women Farmers Read More »

Sokoto’s Road Construction: A Symbol of Corruption and Betrayal

Leave a Comment / Special Reports /

In Mabera, Sokoto, what should have been a road to progress has become a fast-fading stain of corruption, MonitNG, a public accountability organization has exposed Under the much-hyped Sokoto Urban Renewal Project, residents were promised infrastructure. What they got was a sham: a thin smear of bitumen on bare earth—no foundation, no drainage, no intention

Sokoto’s Road Construction: A Symbol of Corruption and Betrayal Read More »

Two Years of Tinubu’s Presidency: A Legacy of Missed Opportunities

Leave a Comment / Special Reports /

Nigerians were promised renewed hope, bold reforms, and decisive leadership two years ago. As President Bola Ahmed Tinubu crosses the halfway mark of his first term, we are left with a growing sense of betrayal. The Centre for Development Communication stands with millions of Nigerians, especially the voiceless, who ask a simple but urgent question: What

Two Years of Tinubu’s Presidency: A Legacy of Missed Opportunities Read More »

Development Communication 101: No One is Illiterate

Leave a Comment / Special Reports /

Having been active on the field for 15 years, I have observed a pattern in development practice. A greater number of practitioners approach solutions to development intervention on the assumption that they are experts, while targeted communities are considered illiterates who know little or nothing. In Nigeria, we simply assume them as illiterates. In my

Development Communication 101: No One is Illiterate Read More »