A finger in every pie-chart

Could a UK graphic design lecturer help to inform Nigerians about their country's finances?

Lagos is a long way from south Tyneside, but that's where I am for five days. I'm teaching information graphics to Nigerian news designers as part of a project to help the Nigerian public to be able to take a more informed interest in the national budget - or financial mismanagement.

Some of my students - who come from newspapers, magazines and television stations - have never had any computer or information graphic training but work by painting and drawing, using Letraset and stencil and letterpress printing. To make matters more difficult, five times a day or so the electricity fails. It's restored pretty quickly by switching to generator, but you could do without it. The students don't blink an eye, they are so used to it.

I'm here because I've been invited by the BBC World Service Trust to train 15 or so selected media designers how to produce financial information graphics. I'm working on something called the "budget monitoring project". The idea is that well designed graphics will allow Nigerians to better monitor public spending.

I've ploughed through a huge pile of Nigerian newspapers and magazines and it is clear that there is not much of a tradition for using information graphics at all, let alone graphics to illuminate finance.

There is another problem. I'm told that even if I arm them with the techniques, the students are doubtful they will be supplied with the financial information in future to put together graphics of this nature.

The training takes place at the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) offices in central Lagos, which has the air of an old military base. There are two rooms. I'll be teaching in the bigger one. The smaller room houses computer equipment, which will be linked to the laptops supplied by the World Service Trust for the students to use for the duration of the course.

Most of my students come from in and around Lagos, but two have travelled down from the northern states .

I show them some information graphics from the British, American and European press and I've prepared a series of assignments: to analyse financial information and create information graphics using photographs, icons, bar-, fever-, table- and pie-charts. They are also getting lectures on the history of information graphics and analysis of information.

Those students with no prior computer training make valiant attempts to learn the basics of the programmes so they can compete with the rest. What is remarkable is that the others, far from getting irritated at any delay, are perfectly happy to help them complete their assignments.

The background education, skill level, facilities and time allocated to learn are a million miles away from those available to students studying the same subject in the UK, yet the level of enthusiasm never wanes.

By the end of the week, everyone has reached a very acceptable standard. Several ask if they can come over to south Tyneside to continue with me. If that were possible, I would be happy to have them. The college has had several applications from Nigerian students over the past few years, but they failed to acquire a visa.

This group has been a pleasure to teach and great company. I hope they've enjoyed the experience as much as I have.

· Phil West is an expert in computer graphics and newspaper design, and programme leader for the Foundation Degree in Media Design (Publishing) at South Tyneside College