News
PwC at Workshop Identifies Journalists’ Key Roles in Sectorial Reportage
The PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) network, in recognition of the place of the media, generally and, journalism in particular, in entrenching good governance, sustenance of democracy, and ensuring a conducive climate for investment and economic development, organized a Capability Enhancement Workshop for Journalists in Lagos, last weekend.
Uyi Akpata, country senior partner, Nigeria and Regional Senior partner for PwC West Market Area, said the initiative was in recognition of this indispensable role of the media especially in the areas of finance and business reporting.
The workshop, in its second year, was developed to help financial journalists improve the contribution they make in terms of their reporting and to ensure an in-depth analysis of the subject, he said.
The workshop had a rich outline of topics including Understanding & Reporting the Budget; Economy and Monetary Policy; the Oil & Gas Value Chain and Impact on Crude oil & gas pricing; Governance & Corporate Reporting; ICT as a major advancement tool in Nigerian Media Practice. Business reporting is particularly challenging for journalists because it is an extremely diverse area involving a complex and technical range of issues covering policy, tax, economics, finance, governance as well as financial reporting.
According to Akpata, “We recognise that it takes extreme care and skill to get a business story right, and convey it to the public in a manner that is factually accurate, yet comprehensible and easy to understand. We are therefore partnering with the media to demonstrate our commitment to high-quality journalism in Nigeria”.
Key Take Away from the Workshop
Understanding and Reporting the Budget
According to Taiwo Oyedele, partner, head of Tax & Regulatory Services, PwC, aligned with the school of thought that budget is the second most important document of a country next only to the Constitution.
He defined a budget as “simply a plan of revenue and expenditure over a specified period of time. It provides the framework on which the government’s key policy agenda is built and implemented. Given the federal system of government in Nigeria, detail allocation of revenue and resources across the different tiers of government as well as government departments, ministries and agencies is part of the budgeting process”.
He therefore, said that the budget is an important tool for identifying sources of revenue, allocate the scarce resources in an efficient manner, and ensure effective implementation of the strategic goals that should improve the welfare of the people. “In terms of transparency and accountability, the budget provides a framework to measure the performances of political office holders and for stakeholders and the public in general to demand accountability for the resources of the country. Legal bases and reality check Based on the law, the Constitution requires that there must be a budget.
“Section 81(1) provides that the President shall cause to be prepared and laid before each House of the National Assembly at any time in each financial year estimates of the revenues and expenditure of the Federation for the next following financial year.
“In section 81(2), the heads of expenditure contained in the estimates (other than expenditure charged upon the Consolidated Revenue Fund of the Federation by this Constitution) shall be included in a bill, to be known as an Appropriation Bill (that is, Budget), providing for the issue from the Consolidated Revenue Fund of the sums necessary to meet that expenditure and the appropriation of those sums for the purposes specified therein. The Fiscal Responsibility Act also requires a cash plan and schedule of disbursement within 30 days of enactment of Appropriation Act.
“In addition, quarterly reports are to be prepared within 30 days of the end of each quarter.
“Unfortunately in reality, the budget is usually presented late by the Executive with further delays in debate between the executive and legislature on less important issues bordering on benchmark oil price rather than revenue generation. Also, very little information is provided regarding actual implementation.
“Salient Questions and Food for thought. Certain questions must be addressed for change to happen rather than sustaining the status quo.
“These include: 1. why do we start our budget from a zero base every year? What happens to the unspent amounts from previous years due to budget under-performance?
“3 2. Why do we not subject actual implementation to value for money audit? The question is whether what “it is” is as good as “what could have been”. 3. Should Nigeria continue to depend on crude oil to drive our budget? How do we diversify our source of revenue? 4. How do we ensure that the budget is prepared and approved timely and actually serves its purpose and not just a “tick-the-box” exercise.
Concluding Thoughts
When analysing the budget, journalists must be able to read between the lines. It is often what has not been said that is more important that what was actually said; Learn to connect the dots from one period to another and also with respect to different components even within the same budget. For instance, it will be useful to relate Debt to GDP ratio versus debt service to total revenue; budget deficit and capital expenditure; subsidy and oil benchmark etc and The media needs to track performance and report over the entire period not just during the budgeting process; Tell a story, give statistics, and a balanced perspective.
Also, ensure accuracy of information, do research, speak to experts; Ask the right questions even if they are difficult and Be creative, give substance -don’t just collate information We hope there will be a positive change in our approach to Budgeting as a nation with significant improvement in level of implementation and ultimately transparency and accountability.
ICT: A Major Advancement Tool in Nigerian Media Practice
Mr. Joseph Iruafemi, business/lead strategist, Web-Fair Solutions and co-director, Founders Institute, urged media practitioners to embrace modern technologies to enhance their performances.
Iruafemi said that with software, virtual newsrooms are possible; where news-gathering and editing are done real-time through collaborative-editing tools, cloud-sources, between the reporter and the editor.
He added that with iReports, news platforms in the country have empowered the people to be part of the news gathering, although authentication of the news credibility has posed greater challenge.
On news dissemination, he said with over 90 million Nigerians having access to the internet, searching for credible news, the onus falls on the professional journalists to harness the opportunity to better their worth, while repositioning the nation in the comity of new world information order (NWIO).
“Is it possible for us to have a website that coverts words to audio, because most young people prefer to listen to audio to reading letters/words. We are in an era of software for micro-contents; where media houses partner the telecoms on additional news contents dissemination. This will help in expanding the horizons of the media and the readership will broaden,” he suggested.
He further urged the participants not to allow the social media to wrestle the pen from their hands, adding that authentication of reports and analytical reports would always endear the conventional media to the readers’ heart.
INTERPOL’s African Cyberthreat Assessment Report 2026 revealed that Artificial intelligence accounts for 55 per cent of reported cybercrimes across Africa and making attacks faster, more sophisticated and increasingly difficult to detect.
The report warns that the continent’s rapid digital transformation, marked by more than 1.1 billion mobile subscribers in 2025, is being matched by an equally rapid evolution in cybercrime, while fragmented legislation and limited AI readiness among law enforcement agencies continue to weaken responses.
The 40-page assessment, based on survey data from 36 African member countries, said cybercrime has shifted from isolated criminal activity to an industrialised, borderless ecosystem powered by AI.
According to the report, East Africa has become a hotspot for mobile money fraud and ransomware attacks targeting critical infrastructure, while business email compromise (BEC) and romance scams are widespread across Central and West Africa.
Southern Africa, it noted, has become an attractive target for international cybercriminals due to its high level of internet connectivity.
The report also highlighted the growing financial impact of cybercrime across the continent, revealing that losses have more than doubled since 2024, rising from 192 million dollars to 484 million dollars.
It attributed the increase largely to AI-enabled scams, credential harvesting and automated social engineering attacks.
INTERPOL said online scams remained the most commonly reported form of cybercrime in 2025, with criminals exploiting mobile money platforms, social media and AI-generated content to deceive victims.
It added that 72 per cent of surveyed countries reported the existence of scam centres, with the highest concentration recorded in Southern and West Africa.
The report further identified digital sextortion and online harassment as persistent threats, driven increasingly by AI-generated deepfakes and synthetic media.
According to data from TrendAI, one of INTERPOL’s partners, about 600,000 sextortion incidents were detected during the reporting period.
Business email compromise schemes have also become more sophisticated, with AI being used to generate highly convincing email communications.
The report said Africa-based threat actors are increasingly targeting victims in Europe and North America using cyber infrastructure spread across multiple jurisdictions.
INTERPOL warned that the absence of real-time information sharing between banks, telecommunications companies and law enforcement agencies has created significant vulnerabilities in tackling financial cybercrime.
It said cybercriminals are no longer relying solely on stolen credentials but are now creating AI-generated synthetic identities by combining genuine personal information with fabricated details.
These synthetic identities, the report noted, have been used to bypass biometric verification systems, open bank accounts, obtain mobile loans and register SIM cards under false identities.
Neal Jetton, Director of INTERPOL’s Cybercrime Directorate, described cybercrime as one of the most significant criminal threats facing Africa.
“Cybercrime has emerged as one of the most significant criminal threats to the region. AI is automating every stage of a cyberattack from reconnaissance and phishing to extortion and evasion.
“However, we see that when countries work together, cybercriminal infrastructure can be identified, disrupted and dismantled,” he said.
Despite the growing threat, the report highlighted progress in strengthening cybersecurity across the continent.
It disclosed that 17 African countries enacted or amended cybercrime legislation in 2025, while Senegal launched an online reporting platform to improve responses to online offences affecting children.
The report also noted that regional capacity-building initiatives are helping to improve long-term cyber resilience.
INTERPOL said four major cybercrime operations conducted in 2025, Operation Serengeti 2.0, Operation Contender 3.0, Operation Sentinel and Operation Red Card 2.0, resulted in more than 1,500 arrests, the seizure of hundreds of electronic devices and the recovery of over 100 million dollars.
To address the growing threat, the report recommended the adoption of standardised digital forensic capabilities, stronger cross-border collaboration, greater investment in AI literacy for law enforcement personnel and formal public-private partnerships to improve cybercrime prevention, detection and response.
The African Cyberthreat Assessment 2026 forms part of INTERPOL’s African Joint Operation against Cybercrime initiative, funded by the United Kingdom’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, with data contributions from Fortinet, Mastercard, the Shadowserver Foundation, S2W and TrendAI.
Nigerian students will soon design, assemble, test and fly drones as part of their university education, following a partnership between Miva Open University and Abuja-based defence technology company Terra Industries.
The collaboration comes as Nigeria intensifies efforts to develop indigenous capabilities in advanced manufacturing and defence technology, with both organisations seeking to strengthen Africa’s pipeline of deep-tech talent.
The partnership will see students gain hands-on experience in drone engineering and related technologies through dedicated labs and industry collaboration.
The partners will establish robotics, drone and virtual reality laboratories across Miva’s study centres, beginning with a pilot facility in Abuja.
Students will also gain access to industry-led workshops, research opportunities, internships and mentorship in artificial intelligence, robotics, cybersecurity and autonomous systems.
According to the partners, Terra’s engineering teams will work alongside Miva faculty to integrate hands-on hardware training into academic programmes, exposing students to real-world engineering challenges and building industry experience before graduation.
Nathan Nwachuku, co-founder and CEO of Terra Industries, said Africa’s technological future depends on developing engineers capable of building solutions for local challenges.
“The engineers who will build Africa’s future must learn by building. This partnership creates opportunities for students to work with the technologies shaping modern security, infrastructure and autonomous systems,” said Nwachuku.
Miva Open University said the initiative forms part of its commitment to experiential learning, adding that students will have the opportunity to “design, test and fly drones as part of their academic experience”.
The partnership builds on Terra’s expanding role in Nigeria’s defence technology sector. Earlier this year, the company signed a joint venture with the Defence Industries Corporation of Nigeria to localise the production of drones, robotics systems and cybersecurity infrastructure, supporting efforts to strengthen domestic manufacturing and reduce reliance on imports.
Atte Ayodeji, a Nigerian computer scientist,has developed an artificial intelligence algorithm capable of detecting, counting, grouping and generating healthy hair follicles during hair transplant procedures, an innovation that earned him the Best Innovative Technology award.
Atte Ayodeji
Ayodeji also graduated with a Distinction in his Master of Science (MSc) in Computer Science from Birmingham City University on Friday, adding another milestone to an impressive academic year.
Beyond his award-winning hair transplant innovation, the Nigerian researcher developed a system and framework on Explainable Artificial Intelligence (XAI) as a professional responsibility in the diagnosis of lung cancer.
His dissertation received a silver award at the PGXPO2026 Winter, further highlighting the impact of his research in applying artificial intelligence to healthcare.
Sunday Dare, special adviser on Media and Public Communication to President Tinubu, celebrated Ayodeji’s achievements in a post on X, recalling how he first met him in 2019 during his National Youth Service.
“In 2019 when I became a Minister of the Republic, I met a young man of medium height, genteel with penetrating eyes: Atte Ayodeji. His words rarely come out and he could easily be passed by unnoticed. But I noticed him especially when my SA Kemi Areola brought him to me asking my approval for him to do his Youth Service in my office. I approved. From then on he was unstoppable. His brilliance shown and he developed skills beyond his frame.”
Highlighting Ayodeji’s recent accomplishments, Dare congratulated him saying, “Congratulations Atte. I am proud of you!”
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