COI QUERY Country of Origin Nigeria Main subject The Nigerian Observer Question(s) Information on the newspaper the ‘Nigerian Observer’, in particular: 1. Where and how widely is it published? 2. How many and which types of versions are published? 3. Is the online version different from the printed one? 4. Which kind of printing system is used? 5. What are the ethical standards for publishing articles on this newspaper and what are the ethical practices of its journalists? Date of completion 9 July 2018 Query Code Q91 Contributing EU+ COI units (if applicable) Disclaimer This response to a COI query has been elaborated according to the Common EU Guidelines for Processing COI and EASO COI Report Methodology. The information provided in this response has been researched, evaluated and processed with utmost care within a limited time frame. All sources used are referenced. A quality review has been performed in line with the above mentioned methodology. This document does not claim to be exhaustive neither conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim to international protection. If a certain event, person or organisation is not mentioned in the report, this does not mean that the event has not taken place or that the person or organisation does not exist. Terminology used should not be regarded as indicative of a particular legal position. The information in the response does not necessarily reflect the opinion of EASO and makes no political statement whatsoever. The target audience is caseworkers, COI researchers, policy makers, and decision making authorities. The answer was finalised on the 9 July 2018. Any event taking place after this date is not included in this answer. 1 COI QUERY RESPONSE Information on the newspaper the ‘Nigerian Observer’ As stated on its website, the Nigerian Observer (also referred to as ‘the Observer’) is ‘a daily newspaper published in Benin City, Edo State (Nigeria), since 1968 by the Bendel Newspapers Company Limited (BNCL) and is owned by the Edo State Government’1. Such information is confirmed by the online catalogue2 of the US Library of Congress, the oldest and most important library of the United States3. According to the overview of the BNCL provided by the ‘Bloomberg’ web portal, this state-owned media company, located on 24 Airport Road PMB 1334, Benin City, and founded in 1968, ‘does not have any Key Executives recorded’4. As specified by the Nigerian Observer itself in an article published in May 2018, on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the newspaper’s foundation: ‘The newspaper, now Bendel Newspapers Company Limited, publishers of the Observer titles was published as document for daily circulation that would inform the public on the activities of the government of the then Midwest state, educate as well as provide a forum for a two way communication’5. 1. Place and method of publication The ‘Daily Trust’, an Abuja-based national newspaper6, published in July 2016 an article about the challenges faced by the Nigerian Observer, stating that ‘its area of coverage and the daily circulation are limited’7, mainly to Edo State and the Nigerian capital Abuja, while in the past it was read throughout the country. The article specifies that: ‘In the past, the medium was reckoned with in the country, as it competed and outshone many other government-owned newspapers of its generation. But, as it [is] now, the newspaper is leveraging on the euphoria of its past. Daily Trust on Sunday gathered that back in the day, the newspaper was read all over the country, but at the moment its coverage is restricted to the state and its environs and sometimes circulated in certain areas of the Federal Capital Territory. Despite the difficulties faced by media houses in the country in terms of acquiring newsprint, the state government ensures that the newspaper is printed daily. A source told Daily Trust on Sunday that the newspaper now prints limited copies with many copies given out as complementary, mainly to government officials and offices’8. 1 The Nigerian Observer, About Us, n.d. (url). 2 Library of Congress, The Nigerian Observer, n.d. (url). 3 Library of Congress, About the LC [Library of Congress] Online Catalog, n.d. (url). 4 Bloomberg, Company Overview of Bendel Newspaper Company Limited, 6 July 2017 (url). 5 Nigerian Observer, 50 years of the Nigerian Observer on the news stand, 29 May 2018 (url). 6 The Daily Trust is a Nigerian newspaper providing information on business, politics and sports. It is owned by Media Trust Ltd., one of the leading Media companies in Nigeria. For further information, see: Daily Trust, About Us, n.d. (url). 7 Daily Trust, The Nigerian Observer: Surviving on past glory, 24 July 2016 (url). 8 Daily Trust, The Nigerian Observer: Surviving on past glory, 24 July 2016 (url). 2 Such information is corroborated by other sources, some of which refer to its wide circulation in the past decades, whereas others report on its decline over the last years. In a response to an information request on the Nigerian Observer’s circulation, dated January 1996, the Immigration and Refugee Board (IRB) of Canada reported that ‘According to the 1991 edition of The World's News Media, the Nigerian Observer is a regional daily, with a Sunday edition. Weekday circulation in 1991 was 150,000’9. Such figures are confirmed by the Nations Encyclopedia – a web portal providing information on the countries of the world as well as on the UN and its agencies10. On its overview of Nigeria’s media landscape, the Nations Encyclopedia refers to the Nigerian Observer as a national newspaper, whose estimated circulation was, in 2002, of 150,000 daily copies, making it the fourth most widely read newspapers in Nigeria. As stated in the source11: ‘In 2002 there were 26 major daily newspapers in Nigeria, some of them published by the federal or state governments. Leading Nigerian daily newspapers (with their 2002 estimated circulations) are’: CIRCULATION Daily Times (national) 400,000 National Concord (Lagos) 200,000 Daily Champion (Lagos) 150,000 Nigerian Observer (national) 150,000 The Punch (national) 150,000 Nigerian Tribune (national) 109,000 New Democrat (Kaduna) 100,000 Nigerian Standard (Jos) 100,000 New Nigerian (national) 80,000 The Guardian (Lagos) 80,000 This Table is part of the quote mentioned above12 As stated previously, however, its circulation lowered over the last years, as confirmed by some sources. In a response to another information request on the Nigerian Observer’s weekend editions, 9 IRB (Canada), Nigeria: Additional information on a newspaper entitled Observer, 1 January 1996 (url). 10 Nations Encyclopedia, Home page, n.d. (url). 11 Nations Encyclopedia, Nigeria – Media, n.d. (url). 12 Nations Encyclopedia, Nigeria – Media, n.d. (url). 3 dated January 2008, the IRB reports the testimony of the editor of ‘the Punch’, a Lagos-based newspaper13: “‘it [the Nigerian Observer] has declined in the last few years as competition from the private media (such as The Punch) has intensified and its pro-government editorial slant has made it a hard sell in the present difficult market’”14. This is confirmed by the aforementioned Daily Trust article, published in July 2016, which notes that ‘The newspaper’s popularity started declining with the proliferation of private newspapers in the country, as patronage shifted from government media to privately-owned ones’15. Another reason behind its decline appears to be related to its financial unsustainability, as it was neglected by the Edo government despite being a state-owned media asset. The Daily Trust article (July 2016) reports the testimony of a former staff of the company, who stated that: ‘“the media house has not received any special attention since 1999, as it has been neglected by successive governments. The ex-staff said in the past the newspaper was famous and competed favourably with the likes of the Daily Times and New Nigerian, but that things are no longer the same. The former staff noted that the newspaper depends on the government for virtually everything because the commercial department which ought to have been generating funds to complement subvention is not functioning”’16. In this regard, it should be mentioned that plans to sell the Nigerian Observer due to its financial crisis have been reported by a few sources. According to the aforementioned Bloomberg’s overview of the BNCL (2017): ‘Edo State Governor Godwin Obaseki has said his administration will privatise The Nigerian Observer newspaper (owned by Bendel Newspapers Company Limited) and Edo Broadcasting Service. He said the privatisation had become necessary because the state media outfits were not self-sustaining’17. Such information has also been reported by the ‘Naija Center News’18, an online news portal about Nigeria and Nigerians in diaspora19, and the ‘All Time Post’20, a general-interest online newspaper published in the United States21. However, as reported in March 2018 by ‘Today.ng’, a digital news 13 The Punch is a widely read Lagos-based newspaper in existence since the early 1970s. See: The Punch, Home, n.d. (url). 14 IRB (Canada), Nigeria: Whether "The Weekend Observer" newspaper exists; a copy of The Weekend Observer, Vol. XI, No. 1,751, Saturday, April 24, 2004, 31 January 2008 (url). 15 Daily Trust, The Nigerian Observer: Surviving on past glory, 24 July 2016 (url). 16 Daily Trust, The Nigerian Observer: Surviving on past glory, 24 July 2016 (url). 17 Bloomberg, Company Overview of Bendel Newspaper Company Limited, 6 July 2017 (url). 18 Naija Center News, Edo govt to privatize Nigerian Observer Newspaper, EBS, 7 July 2017 (url). 19 For more information, see: Naija Center News, About us, n.d.