Wild Africa has partnered with Nigeria’s private radio station, Diamond 88.5 FM, to launch Wildlife Conservation Matters. This new 30-minute radio programme, airs bi-weekly, on the second and last Monday every month. This programme will cover significant issues confronting Nigeria’s wildlife and forests, the ongoing efforts to address illegal wildlife trade, and updates on Nigeria’s wildlife laws.
Nigeria’s wildlife is in crisis. Over the last three decades, species such as lions, elephants, gorillas, and chimpanzees have been driven to the brink of extinction. Conservationists estimate that fewer than 400 elephants, fewer than 100 Cross River gorillas, and about 50 lions remain in Nigeria.
In addition, Nigeria has emerged as a major transit hub for illegal wildlife products in West Africa, particularly elephant ivory and pangolin scales, that are smuggled from neighbouring countries to Asia. A growing appetite for unlawful bushmeat consumption also threatens populations of endangered species and risks introducing zoonotic diseases such as COVID-19, Ebola Virus, and Mpox.
When it comes to creating awareness around this crisis, radio is a powerful platform – one of Nigeria’s best mediums for reaching audiences nationwide. Its passive audio feature, which allows listeners to engage in other activities, such as driving and farming, while they listen in, makes it a popular choice in Nigeria.
Despite their popularity, programmes such as sports, politics, entertainment, and general news are prioritised more than environmental issues. There are not enough radio programmes dedicated to addressing biodiversity issues in Nigeria.
Wild Africa’s partnership with Diamond 88.5 FM is changing the tide with Wildlife Conservation Matters. The show premiered on September 9 on Diamond 88.5 FM in Ilesa, Southwest Nigeria, and will subsequently be aired on its sister radio station, Diamond 88.7 FM in Ilorin, Northcentral Nigeria. The show can also be streamed on Spotify.
The programme airs from 1:00 to 1:30 p.m. West African Time on the scheduled days. The first season highlights the importance of wildlife conservation and forests in particular as key habitats, the need to update Nigeria’s wildlife laws, and the urgency of saving endangered species from extinction.
“I am super excited to be the host of Wildlife Conservation Matters, a collaboration between Wild Africa and Diamond 88.5 FM”, said Glory Itiafe, the program host. “Join me on this journey of protecting our planet’s precious wildlife as we discover, learn, and take action, inspiring change in Nigeria, one conversation at a time.”
Wild Africa Nigeria Representative Festus Iyorah said, “We are expanding our reach beyond Lagos to other states in Nigeria, and radio is one of the fastest ways to reach a newer audience because of its ubiquitous nature. With Diamond FM, the campaign will reach new audiences across two different regions in Nigeria.”
ABOUT WILD AFRICA
Wild Africa aims to be Africa’s most effective conservation communicator, inspiring the public support and political will to protect Africa’s wildlife and wild spaces forever. We believe people and wildlife can only survive and thrive together, so we are popularising conservation with a much broader audience than has previously been engaged. By amplifying the voices of African opinion leaders from every field through a powerful network of media partners and diverse programming, we seek to promote domestic wildlife tourism, local conservation projects and the passage and effective enforcement of conservation laws. Through our communications and direct support, we also aim to deliver permanent reductions in wildlife crime, the demand for illegal bushmeat, human/wildlife conflict and habitat loss. Our network includes more than 15 national and international broadcasters, as well as radio, newspaper, billboard, PR and social media companies, who work with us pro bono to add their voices and promote conservation and environmental issues. We partner with over 160 ambassadors from music, sports, film, TV, business, religion and government from Nigeria, Zimbabwe, South Africa, Rwanda, Ghana, Namibia, and Somaliland.
For more information, visit: wildafrica.org
