MINISTER OF INFORMATION SAYS NIGERIA REMAINS COMMITTED TO SEEING THE FULL OPERATIONALIZATION OF MIL INSTITUTE 29-11-24
By Sadiq Aminu The Minister of Information and National Orientation, Alhaji Muhammad Idris, says Nigeria remains committed to seeing the full operationalisation of the Media and Information Literacy (MIL) Institute for which it has been awarded hosting rights by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO).
The Minister stated this in Paris during a meeting with the UNESCO Assistant Director-General for Communication and Information, Dr. Tawfik Jelassi, on the sidelines of President Bola Tinubu’s State Visit to France.
Recalling his previous meeting with Dr. Jelassi, in 2023, Alhaji Idris reiterated Nigeria’s gratitude to UNESCO for the honour of hosting a Category 2 MIL Institute, the only one of its kind in the world.
He said President Bola Tinubu had been supportive of the take-off process by approving the release of funds required for the immediate operationalisation of the Institute, which will be located in the Federal Capital Territory.
Dr. Jelani had expressed his eagerness to see the Institute’s take-off in Nigeria, describing the imminent take-off of the institute as being very timely, given the growing impact of misinformation, disinformation, and hate speech around the world, as well as the increasing importance of a safer and trusted Internet.
He said the goal of the guidelines was to promote critical thinking and platform transparency, whilst also safeguarding freedom of expression.
Dr. Jelani told Alhaji Idris that the UNESCO MIL Cities initiative, which seeks to integrate and embed the concept of Media and Information Literacy into the design and daily operations of cities around the world, including transport systems, community activities, culture, and billboards
They also discussed UNESCO’s new Guidelines for the Governance of Digital Platforms, published in 2023, following a multi-stakeholder consultation that assembled over 10,000 submissions from 134 countries.
Dr. Jelassi presented copies of the document to the Minister of information and National Orientation, who assured that Nigeria would work with all relevant stakeholders to domesticate the guidelines to ensure a safer and more responsible internet for Nigerians.