AdvoKC Foundation has trained journalists on how to use its Promise Tracker tool to promote accountability and evidence-based reporting.
The training, titled “Using the Promise Tracker for Evidence-Based Advocacy for Journalists,” was held online on Thursday, January 29, and brought together journalists from different media organisations in Nigeria.
AdvoKC Foundation, a youth-led civic tech organisation, said the training was aimed at helping journalists hold government officials and political leaders accountable for campaign promises made during elections.
Participants were taught how to use the Promise Tracker to monitor government activities and track whether political promises are fulfilled after elections. The training focused on using the tool for government accountability reporting, community impact stories, and budget and resource tracking.
Journalists were shown how to follow the money from promised budget allocations to actual spending, investigate differences between budgeted and spent funds, track distribution of resources across communities, and expose possible mismanagement of public funds.
The session also highlighted how the Promise Tracker can support data-driven investigative reporting and pre-investigation research. Another feature introduced was the Legislative Agenda Meter, which helps journalists track lawmakers’ promises and legislative activities.
According to the organisers, legislative tracking is important because elected officials make promises that shape the future of citizens, but many of such promises are often forgotten after elections. Tracking these commitments, they said, moves citizens from blind trust to factual proof and helps improve governance and public service delivery.
Journalists were also introduced to a support grant for in-depth, evidence-based and high-impact public interest reporting. The grant, AdvoKC said, is open to all journalists regardless of experience or media affiliation.
They were encouraged to use data rather than rely only on political statements, to follow promises instead of politicians, and to tell stories that show how government policies affect the daily lives of citizens.
The foundation said democracy works best when journalism is fearless, informed and driven by verifiable evidence.
AdvoKC recently launched the Promise Tracker, a digital platform described as Nigeria’s foremost and unbiased tool for tracking campaign promises and holding elected officials accountable months after elections.
Explaining the reason for the platform, the group said in a statement that Nigerian voters are often motivated by campaign promises that reflect their social, economic and political needs, but are usually disappointed when such promises are not fulfilled.
The organisation added that the platform is designed to increase the rate at which political office holders fulfil their campaign promises.
The two-hour training was facilitated by Luqman Adamu, Kyla Samuel and Dare Olatunde.
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