African journos win at WASH Media Awards

Three African journalists have beaten 150 others from 40 countries worldwide to win at the WASH Media Awards for their excellence in reporting on water, sanitation and hygiene-related (WASH) issues. Alain Tossounon of Benin, Ngala Killian Chimtom of Cameroon and Francis Odupute of Nigeria were among the winners at this years competition.

The winners will receive their awards during a ceremony on 31 August 2012 at the World Water Week, taking place in Stockholm, Sweden from 26-31 August, while all entrants will receive certificates as an acknowledgement to their participation in the competition.

The World Water Week is the annual meeting place for the planet's most urgent water-related issue and is organised by The Stockholm International Water Institute (SIWI) where it brings together experts, practitioners, decision makers and business innovators from around the globe to exchange ideas, foster new thinking and develop solutions.

Winners

The journalists from Africa who emerged as winners are:

Alain Tossounon, a professional journalist in Benin, won for his for piece entitled Access to safe water in the town of Ava-Sô, A perilous conquest for survival (Accès à l'eau potable dans la commune de Sô-Ava, Une conquête périlleuse pour la survie) in the Print-Online Category.
Ngala Killian Chimtom, a journalist from Cameroon, who has been working for the state media for the past eight years, carrying out reporting tasks on radio and television won in the Radio Category for 'Taps Run Dry'.
Francis Odupute, an artist, journalist and head of the Graphic Arts department at the Nigerian Observer newspaper won in the Cartoon Category for his work 'The Strategists'.

According to SIWI, journalists during the 2012 World Water Week will share their experiences on reporting WASH issues with leading water, sanitation, environment and development experts reporting during different session throughout the week.

Other winners included:

Berta Tilmantaite from Lithuania for 'The River Runs Back' in the TV category.

Francesca de Châtel from Belgium for 'Water Around the Mediterranean' in the High Income Category

Ketan Trivedi from India for 'Alchemy of Earning Money through Wastes and Making a Village Clean, Hygienic and Lovely' in the Hindi Category

SIWI says media in general and journalists in particular are key partners for sanitation, hygiene and water sector professionals in their awareness raising, advocacy and behaviour change work.

"Journalists play a central role in the highlighting of water and gender related issues and positioning of women as environmental leaders," according to to a statement, "They greatly contribute to bringing in the spotlight the too often neglected issues of the necessity of toilets and hand washing for a dignified, safe and healthy life for billions of people."

The WASH Media Awards are organised by SIWI and Water Supply and Sanitation Collaborative Council (WSSCC).

For more, go to www.siwi.org and www.wsscc.org