By Chibuike Nwabuko
ABUJA (PRECISE POST) – Participants at a two-day training on Human Rights Reporting and Advocacy organised by the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) have pledged to deploy the skills acquired to strengthen human rights protection, advocacy and public engagement in Nigeria in line with global best practices.
The training, held from September 22 to 23, 2026, at the BUNKer, Wuse 2, Abuja, focused on graphic design and the use of Canva, content creation, social media management, as well as news writing and storytelling from a human rights perspective.
Declaring the training open, the Executive Secretary of the Commission, Chief Tony Ojukwu, OFR, SAN, said human rights protection goes beyond investigations, interventions and policy recommendations, stressing that the ability to communicate human rights issues accurately, clearly and strategically was equally critical.
Ojukwu, who was represented by the Director of Civil and Political Rights, Halilu Adamu, said effective communication could determine whether an important human rights issue received public attention, whether a victim’s experience was properly understood and whether citizens became better informed about their rights and responsibilities.
He said the training would strengthen the Commission’s capacity to transform complex human rights issues into compelling and accessible visual content, particularly for young people and digital audiences.
According to him, social media has become one of the most powerful channels for public education, advocacy and engagement, providing opportunities to disseminate information, highlight interventions, counter misinformation and engage citizens.
The Executive Secretary charged staff to cultivate a human rights communication culture anchored on accuracy, professionalism, ethics, empathy, dignity and strategic advocacy.
In her remarks, the Director of Corporate Affairs and External Linkages Department, Fatimah Agwai, said the training was organised to ensure that the Commission operates at the level of world-class National Human Rights Institutions, particularly in view of Nigeria’s A-Status accreditation by the Global Alliance of National Human Rights Institutions (GANHRI).
Agwai said the A-Status was not merely an award but a recognition of the Commission’s compliance with the Paris Principles and a call to higher responsibility.
She said the Executive Secretary wanted a media department that went beyond event coverage to actively defend human rights through strategic communication.
“Every press release and social media post is a statement of the Commission’s independence, impartiality and credibility,” she said.
According to her, an A-Status National Human Rights Institution must communicate with authority rather than propaganda, while NHRC communication must remain factual, timely and rights-based, offering hope to vulnerable persons and guidance to duty-bearers.
At the end of the training, participants pledged to translate the knowledge and skills acquired into improved content, stronger advocacy, more effective public engagement and greater impact in the promotion and protection of human rights in Nigeria, in line with global best practices.
If you want, I can also give you �3 more punchy newspaper-style headlines for this story.
