Media Release
1 February 2023
JOHANNESBURG, 1 February 2023- Media Monitoring Africa (MMA) and UNICEF announced the 2022 lsu Elihle Awards winner on Tuesday 31 January 2022. Isu Elihle is an isiZulu phrase that means a “Great Idea” when translated to English, these Awards were launched in 2016 and has been running for five years. Over a hundred applications were received from nineteen African countries which shows a huge growth. These Awards aim to encourage fresh reporting, innovative approaches and insightful investigations that seek to give children a voice and elevate the status of the child all over Africa.
We are excited to announce this year’s winners: 1st prize and overall winner of the 2022 Awards goes to Lourdes Walusala, an award-winning multimedia journalist from the Kenya Broadcasting Corporation (KBC), based in Kenya. Lourdes is awarded for her story titled, “Tired children frustrated parents.” The story is about the plight of learners in Nairobi who have to endure long school days due to the number of hours they have to commit in getting to school very early coming back late and doing plenty of homework. The main cause of the problem is poor transport systems and hectic traffic jams. This story was an excellent exploration of how the demands of commuting to school impacts on children’s education, academic performance and quality of life. The judges commented on her reporting by saying, “This was a brilliant story. From the storytelling, to the issue addressed, to the people of authority who were spoken to. I really enjoyed retaining all the information provided. The journalist has done an excellent job in the presentation of this piece.” She receives a cash prize of ZAR25 000 after being ranked the overall winner by a panel of judges. Listen to her story here and here.
The 2nd prize of ZAR15 000 is a tie between Rolivhuwa Sadiki, a freelance journalist from South Africa and Waji Kiga Elis Banmia, an experienced Cameroonian backpack Journalist and a fact checker who currently works for the country’s State broadcaster the Cameroon Radio and Television – CRTV, Adamawa Regional Station. His two part series titled, “Can alternative cattle feeding methods improve school attendance in Adamawa Cameroon?”, is about the plight of boys in Adamawa region of Cameroon who have to seasonally abandon school in search of green pasture for their family cattle. This disrupts their education and which also increases the rate school dropouts. The judges commented on his story by saying, “I really enjoyed listening to this radio documentary, which gave children the platform to tell their stories, engage with the problems they face and offer solutions for their unique contexts.” Watch his story here and here.
Rolivhuwa Sadiki received the prize for her article titled, “Beyond special: Children with disabilities struggle to go to school.” It is about a comprehensive account of the challenges faced by children with intellectual disability and the struggles they face accessing (and sometimes not) mainstream education. In her article, Sadiki exposes the obstacles that children with disabilities face when it comes to accessing education, and looks at how these children are falling through gaps in the system. The judges commended her for her approach, “I think that the article was original in its approach towards the issue and discovered various policies and solutions relating to the issue.” Read her story here.
“UNICEF is pleased to once again be partnering with Media Monitoring Africa on this important programme that spotlights children in a thoughtful and impactful way. In doing so, the Isu Elihle Award participants provide a valuable opportunity for their viewers, listeners and readers to better understand the experiences of vulnerable children in our region,” Sudeshan Reddy, Communication Specialist, UNICEF South Africa.
The 2023 application date will be announced early this year, we call upon journalists from all over Africa to enter the awards. Congratulations to all the winners!
For further information, please contact:
Jacques Ndong, Project Coordinator, jacquesn@mma.org.za; 011 788 1278
About MMA
Media Monitoring Africa‘s vision is a responsible, quality media that enables an engaged and informed citizenry in Africa and across the world. MMA aims to promote the development of a free, fair, ethical and critical media culture in South Africa and the rest of the continent. To achieve MMA’s vision, the three key areas that MMA seeks to address through a human rights-based approach are: media ethics, media quality and media freedom.
For more information about MMA and its work for children visit www.mediamonitoringafrica.org
Follow MMA on Twitter, Facebook and YouTube
About UNICEF
UNICEF works in some of the world’s toughest places, to reach the world’s most disadvantaged children. Across more than 190 countries and territories, we work for every child, everywhere, to build a better world for everyone.
For more information about UNICEF and its work for children visit www.unicef.org
Follow UNICEF on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube
Comments are closed.