INFORMATION AS WEAPON IN WINNING THE BATTLE AGAINST THE SPREAD OF COVID 19 IN THE NORTH.
In the face of the global outbreak of the dreaded COVID 19 spread, that is ravaging many countries
And has brought the world to her knees. Information remain key to winning the fight against the upsurge of the virus
In our communities, States and Country at large. However, this can only be efficient if the information is disseminated
To the people in the language they understand and interact with, the most.
Nigeria being a multi-lingual country has 3 major indigenous languages with English language as the official language.
A larger chunk of the Nigerian population use either of these 3 languages in their social interaction and do not speak nor
understand English language thereby finding it difficult to demystify the media messages on the preventive measures
Of curtailing the spread of COVID 19. This is the underlying factor why these measures are not religiously observed by
Nigerians particularly the Social Distancing measure
In most states of Northern Nigeria, Hausa language is predominantly used for social interaction by both urban and rural
Dwellers alike. An awareness campaign on the preventive measures of COVID 19 in Hausa language can be viable and effective
In sufficiently curbing the progression of the virus in our shores using Jingles. These jingles if placed on radio stations across the region,
Willl have the capacity to reach significant proportion of the population with radio being the most commonly used medium.
The evolution of technology has birthed the concept of media convergence,
which as a result, different caliber of people regardless of social status have access to the radio
(compared to any other medium of Mass Communication)
Thereby magnifying the propensity of message (awareness) to penetrate every nook and cranny of the region.
Information is just key; it is weapon that can be used to keep the virus at bay if wielded properly.
