From Musa Muhammad Kutama, Calabar
The Director-General and Chief Executive Officer of Voice of Nigeria (VON), Mallam Jibrin Baba Ndache, has urged broadcasters and journalists across the country to strengthen collaboration, embrace innovation and uphold professional standards in the discharge of their duties.
Ndache made the call in Calabar, the Cross River State capital, while delivering a speech at the 82nd General Assembly of the Broadcasting Organisations of Nigeria (BON).
He said broadcasters must work together across public, private and international platforms to promote national unity, development, peace and Nigeria’s positive image.
“We must continue to strengthen collaboration among public, private and international broadcasters, embrace innovation, uphold professional standards and use our platforms responsibly to promote national unity, development, peace and Nigeria’s positive image,” he said.
The VON director-general described the assembly as significant, noting that it brought together institutions that had played important roles in shaping Nigeria’s broadcasting industry.
He said the history of BON reflected the industry’s longstanding recognition of the importance of collaboration and a collective voice, adding that efforts to establish the organisation dated back to 1973, when broadcasters identified the need for better coordination, particularly in covering major national and international events.
Ndache also highlighted Voice of Nigeria’s historical connection with the country’s broadcasting development, explaining that the organisation began as the External Service of the Nigerian Broadcasting Corporation before becoming an autonomous international broadcasting organisation in the early 1990s.
He said VON had since remained committed to projecting Nigeria and African perspectives to audiences across the world.
According to him, the organisation currently broadcasts in nine languages: English, Hausa, Igbo, Yoruba, Fulfulde, Kiswahili, French, Arabic and Mandarin.
He explained that the addition of Mandarin in 2026 had expanded VON’s capacity to reach Chinese-speaking audiences and strengthened broadcasting as a tool for cultural diplomacy and international understanding.
Ndache said the organisation’s multilingual approach reflected Nigeria’s and Africa’s diversity, stressing that broadcasting was more effective when stories were told in languages audiences understood and identified with.
He reiterated the need for broadcasters to uphold professional ethics, adopt new technologies and use their platforms responsibly to promote peace, unity and national development.
The VON director-general assured members of BON that the organisation remained committed to working with the Nigerian broadcasting community and looked forward to strengthening its collaboration with the association and other industry stakeholders.