Between 2020 and 2025, Awan partnered with International Media Support (IMS), Journalists for Human Rights (JHR), and The Munathara Initiative to design and deliver a wide range of online and in-person journalism training and mentoring programmes. These initiatives targeted journalists working in fragile and closed contexts across Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, Yemen, Libya, Tunisia, Morocco, Sudan, and Palestine/Gaza. The portfolio included both country-specific projects and multi-country regional programmes, with durations ranging from short, intensive training projects to longer engagements lasting up to one year.

Across these initiatives, Awan trained more than 300 journalists through a mix of online learning, in-person workshops, and mentoring. The programmes addressed urgent professional needs - from lifesaving humanitarian reporting in Yemen during the Covid-19 pandemic and inclusive electoral coverage in Iraq, to ethical journalism, safety, fact-checking, mobile journalism, podcast production, and public-interest reporting in other countries. Despite operating amid conflict and instability, participants produced professional journalism covering humanitarian crises, elections, civic participation, environmental issues, and local accountability.

This body of work demonstrates Awan’s capacity to design and deliver high-quality training while adapting formats and methodologies to diverse political, logistical, and connectivity environments. By combining regional reach with contextual sensitivity, Awan has helped build durable skills, professional networks, and independent journalistic practice across some of the region’s most challenging media landscapes.