The Nigerian Institute of Public Relations (NIPR) and the Global Alliance for Public Relations and Communication Management have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to establish a degree-awarding academy for public relations practice in Nigeria. This move aims to elevate the standards of public relations education and practice in the country.

In addition, Dr. Omoniyi Ibietan has been elected as the Secretary-General of the African Public Relations Association (APRA), marking a significant achievement for Nigeria in the field of public relations on the continent.

Notably, public relations has now been designated as a cadre in the Federal Civil Service effective from December 2023. The Information Officer Cadre has been re-designated to ‘Information and Public Relations Officer Cadre,’ and the Executive Cadre to ‘Executive Officer (Information and Public Relations).’ The NIPR played a critical role in this development and has been commended for its efforts.

Nigeria continues to lead in strengthening and elevating public relations practices both locally and across Africa. This was highlighted during a recent visit by the President of the African Public Relations Association, Mr. Arik Karani, who praised Nigeria’s pioneering efforts in professionalizing public relations.

Mr. Karani noted, “[Nigeria] was, for the longest time, the only country in Africa that had a law that professionalized public relations. It was Nigeria that started it on the continent, and only last year did Zambia come out with its own law. So now we have two countries on the continent, and only now in Kenya, the bill for professionalizing public relations is at the second reading in Parliament.”

Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, reaffirmed the government’s commitment to providing a supportive environment for the growth of the communications industry in Nigeria. The administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu will continue to support initiatives that enhance public relations practice in the country.