The Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, has expressed his unwavering determination to collaborate closely with the Nigerian Institute of Public Relations in crafting communication strategies that will drive the transformative vision encapsulated in the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Tinubu.
Idris made the remarks in Abuja on Tuesday while inaugurating the Governing Council of the NIPR.
“As a professional and a Fellow of the Institute, I fully understand the importance of reputation and the Federal Ministry of Information and National Orientation is determined to partner with the NIPR to design communication strategies that will drive the ‘Renewed Hope’ agenda of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu Administration.
“I must say that I am impressed with the initiatives and programmes of the current Council led by Dr. Ike Neliaku, as contained in a document presented to me earlier before this event. I firmly believe that if well implemented, they have the potential to transform both the Institute and the country into a global reputational hub,” he said.
The Minister, who tasked the NIPR with the responsibility of repairing and rejuvenating Nigeria’s image on the global stage, said reputation is one of the key pillars in nation building and plays strategic roles in development of any nation.
The Minister said part of the challenges Nigeria is currently facing is what he termed ‘reputation deficit’ caused by wrong perception of the country at the global arena.
“This is a sad phenomenon and as professionals, we must find practical public relations solutions to reclaim our damaged reputational asset. Other nations also have their difficulties, but the difference is in how the issues are managed with nuance and context, and this is usually achieved through a robust partnership between government, professional groups like the NIPR and the citizens,” he said.
The Minister, who is a Fellow of the Institute, used the occasion to assure Nigerians that the Government is strongly committed to ensuring a greater and prosperous Nigeria for all citizens.
Idris said embedded inside the tough and radical economic reforms of President Tinubu are the seeds of the sustainable prosperity and development that Nigeria deserves, while also appealing for time and patience among Nigerians in order to reap the benefits of the reforms in the long run.
“The present administration has recorded appreciable successes in some key areas of the economy within the short period in office, and we remain committed to comprehensive reforms that will change the nation’s development narrative for good,” he said.
The Minister extolled the foresight of the founding fathers of the Institute in conceiving the idea 60 years ago, which has been elevated to an enviable chartered status and places the NIPR among the very few professional bodies in the world with such level of government recognition.
Idris, who charged the newly inaugurated Governing Council of the NIPR to deepen the work of professionalizing the Institute and acting within the provisions of the enabling laws to end quackery in the profession, stressed that activities of quacks in all sectors are affecting the reputation of the country, negatively.
