Lagos, Delta, Imo, Ekiti, SNEPCo, Access Bank and NASENI Back GOCOP’s 10th Conference
The Guild of Corporate Online Publishers has expanded the partnership base for its 10th Annual Conference, bringing four state governments and major corporate and public-sector institutions into an event focused on digital publishing, electoral trust and national development.
The Lagos, Delta, Imo and Ekiti state governments have joined Shell Nigeria Exploration and Production Company, Access Bank Plc and the National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure as partners for the conference.
The two-day event opens on Wednesday, October 7, 2026, at the Radisson Blu Hotel on Isaac John Street, Ikeja GRA, Lagos.
The opening day will concentrate on the economics and operational future of online publishing in Africa. Max Amuchie, Publisher of Sundiata Post, will speak on “The Sundiata Post Model: Building the African Newsroom for the Long Term.”
Biodun Durojaiye, Publisher of The Lagos Times, will subsequently lead a session on “AI and Prompt Engineering for Online Publishing,” examining the growing influence of artificial intelligence on newsroom production and digital-content management.
The day’s final presentation, “Monetisation of Digital Media Business,” will be delivered by Dr Monday Ashibogwu, Publisher of Quick News.
Together, the three sessions address some of the most urgent challenges confronting Nigeria’s digital-media industry: building durable news organisations, adopting emerging technology responsibly and converting audience growth into sustainable revenue.
The programme will also include a luncheon with GOCOP partners, followed by the association’s Annual General Meeting.
Elections, trust and shared responsibility
The main conference on Thursday, October 8, will examine the theme, “2027 Elections: Trust, Transparency and Shared Responsibilities.”
Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission, Prof Joash Ojo Amupitan, SAN, is scheduled to deliver the keynote address. Dr Olisa Agbakoba, SAN, Founding Partner of Olisa Agbakoba Legal and former President of the Nigerian Bar Association, will chair the session.
The panel will include CP Abayomi Shogunle, Commissioner of Police in charge of Election Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation at the Force Headquarters in Abuja; Prof Tayo Popoola, Head of the Department of Mass Communication at the University of Lagos; Adaora Onyechere Sydney Jack, Creative Director of Gender Agenda and Founder of WEWE Network Afrique; and Lanre Arogundade, Executive Director of the International Press Centre.
The choice of theme places media credibility and institutional accountability at the centre of preparations for Nigeria’s 2027 general election. It also reflects growing concern over misinformation, political polarisation, electoral security and the responsibilities of digital publishers in shaping public understanding.
Speaking ahead of the conference, GOCOP Deputy President and Chairman of the 2026 Conference Planning Committee, Mr Olumide Iyanda, said preparations had been completed.
Iyanda welcomed the addition of the four state governments, Access Bank and NASENI, noting that their support strengthened the partnership base behind the conference.
“All is set for our 10th anniversary conference,” he said, adding that the participation of the new sponsors underscored the importance of the national dialogue being convened by GOCOP.
The new partners join an extensive list of previously announced sponsors, including the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, Nigeria LNG Limited, Nigeria Customs Service, Dangote Group, Seplat Energy, Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board, Nigerian Communications Commission and Bank of Industry.
Other partners include the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board, Securities and Exchange Commission, TAJBank, Emadeb Energy, Setraco Nigeria Limited, Sovereign Trust Insurance and Nestlé Nigeria Plc.
Iyanda thanked the organisations for supporting the conference, which he described as an important platform for advancing professional journalism, democratic engagement and national development.
GOCOP is a business membership organisation comprising 127 corporate online publishers in Nigeria. Its annual conference brings together media executives, policymakers, academics, business leaders, civil society organisations and other stakeholders to examine major issues affecting the country.
The 10th-anniversary edition comes at a defining moment for online publishing. Newsrooms are confronting declining advertising revenues, rapidly changing audience behaviour, growing dependence on digital platforms and the disruptive impact of artificial intelligence.
By combining newsroom sustainability with election integrity, the conference places two inseparable questions on the agenda: how digital publishers can build commercially viable institutions and how those institutions can retain the public trust required to influence Nigeria’s democracy responsibly.
