By Admin

The Managing Director of the News Agency of Nigeria, Malam Ali M. Ali, says the agency has done well in the last eight months under his leadership.

The MD made this known during an interactive session with members of staff of the agency on Wednesday in Abuja.

According to Ali, there is the need to look back and see how far the agency has gone under his eight-months-old leadership.

He said: “AI has taken over journalism and NAN Management is not resting on its onus.

“It is conscious of technology driven strategies.

“That is why we always preach about working smart.

“Also, that is why we organised an editorial management retreat in Kaduna early this year.

“The retreat opened the eyes to issues like secondment, leave of absence and study leave.

“When we took charge eight months ago, we decided to take action on the issue of secondment because it was negatively affecting the staff strength of the Editorial Department.

“We have also taken steps to expand the scope of the agency in the form of restructuring so that members of staff can advance and reach the zenith of their career and become directors.

“Also, there has been a remarkable improvement in the Editorial Department.

“We now publish good and quality stories.

“We are utilising the scarce resources optimally.

“We have brought in work tools, furniture, paid data allowance to editors and controllers, and those that write feature stories.”

The NAN boss further explained that working smarts requires data and the agency would continue to provide that within the limited resources.

He said: “I can see efforts of rededication by staff members, including those in the multimedia unit.

“We took a small step, but a giant lift.”

Ali said the agency has protected its sites and portals to ensure security in cyberspace.

He encouraged all reporters in the agency to be innovative and bring in businesses into the agency to boost its revenue generation.

He also said some NAN offices were undergoing renovation and more would follow suit.

Regarding social media, Ali said before the last eight months, NAN did not have a TikTok account, adding: “But today, the Agency’s social media handles are striving in the right direction.

“We have decided to bring back some policies to help staff members that are bereaved or getting married.

“We are trying to restructure the agency.

“It’s work in progress.

“We have also channelled our resources to green energy and that is why the newsroom has power 24/7.

“We have also entered into several partnerships for the good of the agency.”

Ali said that a power generating set, meant for the office of the MD, was deployed to service the Lagos office, adding that it was regrettable that the Lagos office lost over N20 million worth of cables to vandals.

He stressed that the agency is facing some challenges, adding that the management will look into them.

He tasked the Lagos Directorate to leverage on the private capital in Lagos to rake in more revenue for the agency.

On capacity building, Ali said the agency is waiting for funds to ensure that it carries out a series of trainings to build the capacity of members of staff.

He said: “The last eight months have been an amazing job.

“I love this family.

“All of us have been supportive.

“We should give leadership.

“Our roles should not be personal, but rather, the job.

“Let us work together.

“I have seen great harmony.

“In spite of the communication gap, let’s try to bridge the gap.”

Meanwhile, the Director of Special Duties, Mufutau Ojo, called on Zonal Controllers to live up to their responsibilities to improve productivity.

Also, the Head of Admin and Human Resources of the Agency, Malam Abdulhadi Kaliel, said he was confident that before the end of 2024, NAN would get the approval to restructure the agency.

Members of staff across the country commended Ali for the good initiative he has brought to the agency in the last eight months. NAN