Nigeria’s ace journalist and media technocrat, Aliu Akoshile has floated an online newspaper, NatureNews as the country marks 60th independence anniversary on October 1.
Speaking Thursday at a media parley in Abuja, Nigeria’s capital city, Akoshile who was until recently the Managing Director/Editor-in-Chief of the Daily Times, said he came up with the specialised newspaper as a novel solution to the critical challenge of development journalism in Nigeria, and Africa.
He said NatureNews will satisfy the yearnings for authoritative news coverage of the environment and climate change as a means to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals set by the United Nations.
Akoshile, who noted that politics, business, sports and entertainment have dominated media coverage until now, said those sectors will even thrive better in a safe and clean environment.
He said his vision was for NatureNews to be the most authoritative news platform on environment issues in Nigeria and the rest of Africa.
Akoshile who previously managed the entire revenue business of Daily Trust, one of Nigeria’s most successful independent newspapers, said NatureNews will partner all stakeholders that are involved with global actions towards nurturing a living environment.
Commenting on issues of press freedom, he said NatureNews was founded on the principles of fundamental human rights as enunciated in the UN and AU Charters.
He said the newspaper subscribes fully to cardinal ethics of journalism on accurate, fair, balanced and truthful reporting, adding that it will hold governments accountable on their social contracts.
Explaining the areas of focus for NatureNews, Akoshile said the newspaper has set agenda around the menace of gully erosion, desertification, oil spillage, open defecation and especially flooding that recently ravaged many countries in Africa.
On the coincidence of the birth of NatureNews with Nigeria’s diamond jubilee, Akoshile said no positive project is too much to be gifted to such a great nation that is inhabited by a largely good people.
He said he felt fulfilled to have the unique honour of gifting such a remarkable media platform to Nigeria on her 60th anniversary, adding that NatureNews is one of the legacies of his 34 years sojourn in media ecosystem.
