By Joy Obanya/Maureen Okon
The Italian private news agency, Adnkronos, has sought collaboration with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) to facilitate reciprocal news exchange and promote positive narratives about both countries.
The proposal was made on Monday in Abuja when the Italian Ambassador to Nigeria, Mr Roberto Mengoni, visited the management of NAN to discuss a possible partnership between the two agencies.
Speaking during the meeting, Mengoni described Adnkronos as Italy’s leading independent news agency with more than 63 years of experience and seven offices across the country.
He said the agency had a network of more than 250 journalists and correspondents operating in more than 40 countries worldwide.
He said the agency produced more than 1,500 news items daily, alongside 40 video reports, eight television and radio formats, 15 podcasts and vodcasts, as well as 30 live events planned for the 2024–2025 biennium.
According to him, Adnkronos reaches about 10.7 million monthly users and generates approximately 30 million page views through collaborations with more than 40 media groups worldwide.
Mengoni said the agency’s content was produced in five languages and distributed across television, radio, web and social media platforms.
He added that Adnkronos had evolved into a fully integrated media company through its multi-channel production capabilities and commitment to technological innovation.
According to him, the company is able to develop complex editorial products such as podcasts, vodcasts and talk shows.
“Adnkronos is currently implementing an internationalisation strategy aimed at establishing partnerships with the world’s leading and most strategic news agencies.
“To date, the company has signed approximately 40 agreements with major international news agencies. The collaboration model is primarily based on the reciprocal exchange of news flows.
“The objective is to provide broader, more comprehensive, neutral and certified international news coverage to and from the respective countries, while actively countering the spread of misinformation and fake news.
“This approach creates mutually beneficial opportunities by leveraging combined expertise and resources.
“As a subsequent objective, the collaboration may also include the exchange of know-how and continuous updates on professional skills, as well as joint training initiatives for journalistic staff.
“A further step involves the possibility of supporting and covering international media events within the respective territories, such as state visits and official delegations,” he said.
Mengoni said Adnkronos was seeking to expand its presence in Africa to obtain direct information from credible local sources rather than relying solely on major international news agencies.
He said that a draft Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) would be forwarded to NAN to facilitate reciprocal news exchange and broader cooperation.
The ambassador said that Italian companies were increasing investments in Nigeria following recent agreements between President Bola Tinubu and Italian energy company ENI.
He said the partnership would help project a more balanced image of Nigeria by complementing reports that often focused on insecurity, violence and kidnapping.
“There is also good news. The idea is to create greater interest in Nigeria and present a more diverse narrative about the country,” he said.
Responding, the Managing Director of NAN, Mr Ali Mohammad Ali, expressed the agency’s readiness to sign an MoU with Adnkronos to deepen news exchange and strengthen media cooperation.
Ali recalled that NAN was established in 1978 as “the voice of Africa” during Nigeria’s anti-apartheid struggle and had since grown into one of Africa’s leading news agencies.
He said NAN currently operated more than 12 foreign bureaux, including those in London, New York, Johannesburg, Addis Ababa and Moscow, with reporters in all 109 senatorial districts of Nigeria.
According to him, the agency has a workforce of more than 500 journalists and plays a critical role in projecting local, national and international news.
“NAN takes local news to the national stage and national news to the global stage,” he said.
Ali said the agency already had cooperation agreements with major international news organisations, including AFP, AP, Reuters, CBS, Xinhua, Egypt’s Middle East News Agency and Italy’s ANSA.
He added that NAN would welcome another partnership with an Italian news organisation, particularly given the growing Nigerian community in Italy.
The NAN managing director said the agency would review the draft MoU and make necessary adjustments before formalising the partnership.
“According to him, we welcome news exchanges, even cultural exchanges. What we have with the Chinese news agency goes beyond news to include capacity building.
“We also hope to introduce Italian language training here as well,” he said.
On combating misinformation and reporting from conflict areas, Ali said NAN remained committed to factual, balanced and credible journalism.
“If it’s not in NAN, then it’s not authentic. We nourish other media outlets with our stories,” he said.
He explained that NAN journalists covering conflict areas in Borno, Sokoto and Benue states underwent specialised training and often worked closely with security agencies to ensure safety and professionalism.
Ali added that none of the agency’s reporters had been harmed while covering conflict zones because NAN placed a high premium on staff safety.
He further said editors and reporters received refresher training during election periods and operated under strict editorial guidelines to guarantee objectivity and accuracy.
“Our role is to report what we see, meeting the required professional standards. We cannot afford the luxury of being sensational,” he said.
The two parties also discussed cultural similarities between Nigeria and Italy, particularly shared family values, as well as growing Italian interest in investment opportunities across Africa.
The meeting ended with both sides agreeing to expedite the review of the draft MoU and advance plans for formal collaboration.
NAN management said that once content from the partnership is published on its platforms, it would be amplified through the agency’s extensive subscriber network within Nigeria and internationally.(NAN)(www.nannews.ng)
Edited by Abiemwense Moru