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UNESCO empowers Nigerian Judicial Tutors on Freedom of Expression and Safety of Journalist Curriculum
The workshop organized by UNESCO and the Nigerian Institute for Advanced Legal Studies (NIALS) in Lagos state, Nigeria from February 17-19, 2025, gathered 35 participants drawn from the six geo-political zones of Nigeria which included Honourable Justices, Learned Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Professors and Deans from several Nigerian law schools, universities, and legal institutes, and a representative from ECOWAS Court of Justice, among others. The aim of the Training-of-Trainers (ToT) was to ensure the judicial tutors are presented and equipped on the optimal use of the new curriculum on Freedom of Expression and Safety of Journalism for students in the law faculties of Nigerian universities and the Nigeria Law schools developed and adopted by Nigeria Institute of Advanced Legal Studies (NIALS) with the support of UNESCO. The module - the first of its kind in Africa - will ultimately ensure that future judicial actors are well equipped to uphold the rule of law, ensure timely delivery of justice, and guarantee the full observance of international human rights standards, in particular, the right to freedom of expression and access to information.
The workshop built on the recommendations that emerged during a first training for Nigerian judicial actors on freedom of expression, access to information, and safety of journalists, organized by UNESCO in Abuja in 2022, where the participants expressed an interest and a need to integrate these issues in the permanent training of law students and future judicial actors by developing and adopting a specific module in the curriculum of judicial and legal national institutes.
The workshop has been quite useful, it has exposed us to the rudiment of Freedom of Expression and the protection of the Safety of Journalist. We have learned about the international, regional regimes, and national legal frameworks that protect freedom of expression and those who practice it.
The 5-day workshop also covered specific sessions on the use and impact of AI in the judicial systems, and AI’s interactions with other human rights, specifically freedom of expression and access to information.
The event falls at a critical moment for judicial systems around the world which are faced with raising challenges: a rapidly changing digital ecosystem including the growing use of artificial intelligence, online disinformation and misinformation, hate speech and online threats against journalists; privacy issues; and the rise in legal threats against a free, pluralistic, and independent media. According to UNESCO’s data, in the past biennium, 161 journalists were killed while doing their job, with over 86% of these cases remaining judicially unresolved.
The curriculum will expose the students to the legal parameters of FoE and legitimate restrictions; comparative jurisprudence on FoE in sub-Saharan Africa; the approach of the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights; European Court on Human Rights; the Inter-American Court; and other socio-legal restrictions which may impede the realization and entrenchment of these rights in Nigeria amongst others. It is also important to mention that the NUC has given its support for the curriculum to be embedded under law courses that examine Human Rights, Media Law, and Jurisprudence.
A presentation was made by Hon. Justice Edward Amoako Asante, the past president of the ECOWAS Court of Justice on ECOWAS Court of Justice Jurisprudence and Standards on Freedom of Expression, Access to Information, and Safety of Journalists which prompted a series of very engaging discussions. To make the training of trainers as engaging and practical as possible and to equip the participants with the knowledge and technical tools, the participants worked in groups to deliver presentations on the specific topics of the module and shared constructive feedback. This approach ensured a deeper understanding of how best the tutors could replicate the curriculum in their institutions, provided areas of collaboration, and improved camaraderie among participants.
Participants who all agreed on the importance of the concept, brainstormed ideas on how to include this curriculum in the classroom following approval by the Nigerian University Commission to use the curriculum in the classroom. Ideas shared included stepping down this training to fellow lecturers in their universities and teaching this concept alongside other approved courses such as Human Rights Law, and Constitutional Law among others.
The next steps will be to conduct a step-down training for my colleagues teaching constitution law, and international law and I will include it in the information and communication law which I currently coordinate and teach. As the curriculum committee chair of my faculty and member of the Senate, I will see to the buy-in by the university and integration into other courses curricula like Mass Communication and Media Law.
Since 2013 91Â鶹¹ú²ú¾«Æ·×ÔÅÄ under the UNESCO Judges’ Initiative trained over 36,000 judicial actors across more than 160 countries on these issues through regional and national training, a series of Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs), on-the-ground trainings and workshops, and the publications of pedagogical resources such as and . The Abuja Office has since 2022 worked with judicial actors in Nigeria to strengthen their capacities and support their role in protecting freedom of expression, access to information, and the safety of journalists.
The workshop was notably supported by the Multi-Donor Programme on Freedom of Expression and Safety of Journalists.
