Dr Nnamdi Ekeanyanwu, from the federal University of Uyo, will take up a short-term scholarship at the University from Monday 20 October, as part of an initiative by the University’s Centre for International Media Analysis, Research and Consultancy (Cimarc).

During his stay, he will deliver seminars to students and staff in the Research Institute of Media, Arts and Performance (RIMAP) and to the Centre for Research in Law on the media and human rights, and on the rise of Boko Haram in the Nigerian State – the conspiracy theories surrounding the sustenance of the group; accusations of abuses by the Nigerian military; and how the Nigerian media have managed the coverage.

Dr Ekeanyanwu is an associate professor in the Department of Communication Arts at the University of Uyo. He is a communication scholar, researcher, journalist, and Associate Professor, and is also a SUSI Scholar and winner of the 2011 US sponsored Summer Study of the United States Institutes for Scholars in the area of Journalism and Media Studies.

Professor Jon Silverman, director of Cimarc, said: "Dr Ekeanyanwu's visit comes at a vital time for West Africa, with both the Ebola outbreak and the continuing threat of Boko Haram high on the international media agenda. The Cimarc initiative, supported by the Vice Chancellor, a former Foreign Office minister, is a sign that the University is committed to forging relationships with institutions in the developing world."