Information and Public Relations Officers in Ogun State have been charged to embrace emerging technologies as modern skill needed to make them more relevant and advanced in their Information gathering and dissemination for effective job delivery.

          Ogun State Head of Service, Mr. Kehinde Onasanya, gave the charge at a-day training, organised by the Nigeria Union of Journalists, Information Chapel in collaboration with Federal University of Agriculture Abeokuta (FUNAAB), with the themed "Advancing Information Dissemination through Emerging Technologies.

   Mr. Onasanya emphasised the importance of adapting to new technologies to remain relevant in the profession, urging officers to be prompt and strategic in their communication, utilising tools such as social media platforms, content management systems, and data visualisation tools to effectively disseminate information.

The Head of Service stressed the need for timeliness and accuracy in communication, noting that well-crafted stories or reports lose their value if they arrive late or were misreported.

He encouraged IPROs to be creative and in-depth in their reportage, highlighting the importance of feature stories in promoting accountability.

          Onasanya, pointed out that, the efforts of Governor Dapo Abiodun on technology advancement was remarkable which had yielded results in terms of blocking leakages in revenue generation through OG tax , seamless land documentation through OLARMS among others, saying information managers must support the efforts of Government by disseminating its policies through the emerging technology tools to inform the larger population across State.

          Special Adviser to Governor on Public Communication, Mr. kayode Akimade, represented by Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Information and Strategy, Mr. Waheed Adesina, reiterated Government's commitment to Advancing the workforce through technology, saying that most needed tech tools would further be provided for government Information managers for effective discharge of their duties.

          Speaking, Vice Chancellor, Federal University of Agriculture Abeokuta (FUNAAB), Prof. Kehinde Babatunde, represented by Deputy Vice Chancellor (Development), Prof. Mufutau Atayese, commended Ogun State government for powering such training for its workers especially Information Managers, noting that a lot of its policies had been disseminated through various channels, but more could be achieved through usage of emerging technologies such as social media, AI, among others.

          One of the resource persons, Special Adviser on Information Communication Technology (ICT), Mr. Dayo Abiodun, said (IPRO) must stay ahead in the world of digitalisation in order to reposition analogical ways of information dissemination, noting digital literacy as a starting point.

          Abiodun, represented by Director, Standard Regulations, Planning and Research, Bureau of Information Technology (BIT) Mrs. Olatundun Adekunte, highlighted various emerging technologies skills which would enhance effective information dissemination such as; desktop publishing, graphics designs, social media navigation, cloud- based activities among others, calling on Information and Public Relations Officers, managing the image of government to master all of the skills and put it into use in the discharge of their duties.

          He further stated that the theme was relevant in today's rapidly evolving digital world, where communication channels were changing at an unprecedented pace , making it crucial for government information handlers to master the use of Artificial Intelligence, Google, Twitter, Threads, Instagram for timeliness and accessibility which were the cornerstone of information dissemination.

In his welcome address, the Chairman, Nigeria Union of Journalists, Ogun State Information Chapel, Comrade 'Femi Osipitan, noted that capacity building remains the only way to go for better productivity, while he enjoined officers to continually and constantly strive to operate from the centre of knowledge.

Osipitan noted that the Chapel's leadership is committed to prioritizing training and retraining for members in order to support Government efforts and enhance the quality of information dissemination, saying a well-informed citizenry is crucial for making better decisions, and well-trained information managers are essential for achieving this goal, while adding that in today's digital age, it is imperative that officers are proficient in the use of latest ICT gadgets and applications to disseminate information effectively and efficiently

One of the participants, Mrs Akinpelu Funmilola applauded the leadership of the Chapel for the timely training saying that the training was an eye opener to the new paradigms in leveraging emerging technologies in information gathering and dissemination for Information and Public Relations Officers.