Social Media Week Lagos 2019

When was the last time you received a viral Whatsapp story that was too good to be true? Or a story that quoted crazy statistics and facts without any source? As Nigerians, we are often skeptical of each other s stories. And globally, the stories that come out of Nigeria are not always the ones we would choose.

But as human beings, storytelling is a core part of our interaction with one another. Our stories have the power to make great impact so we need to be aware of the responsibility we have to use data wisely and avoid misinforming our audiences.

Proper use of data and good fact sharing practices have the potential to drive major change. The power of data for storytelling is so important, especially for us as Africans. Both globally and within our borders, we need to know how to tell powerful, authentic stories that use data to showcase our realities.

Storytelling has always been a way to communicate with humans on an emotional level. Whether in business, marketing, advocacy, improving citizen s rights or non profits attracting funds, for us at Sickle Cell Advocacy and Management Initiative we believe in finding stories that resonate with our audience in every way possible.