Wash Media Awards launched

Journalists play a critical role in educating the public about events and issues and how they affect them, however, many a time, such efforts go unrecognized.

It is on this basis that the government in partnership with Water Aid, UNICEF, Uganda Water and Sanitation NGO Network, Water Mission, World Vision, SNV and IRC has come up with Wash Media Awards to reward journalists who play a central role in highlighting water, sanitation and hygiene-related issues.

"The Uganda Wash Media Awards initiative is a collective sector effort aimed at recognizing and encouraging excellence across the media fraternity in raising awareness of the importance of WASH," said Naomi Kabarungi, the Public Relations Officer of Water Aid, one of the organisers of the awards.

Objectives of the awards

According to Kabarungi, the awards aim to reward and encourage excellence in the reporting and implementation of WASH service delivery, and build and maintain strong working relations with the media and facilitate progressive dialogue thus bridging information gap and thereby have informed citizenry.

The awards also aim to promote professionalism in media engagement and build capacity, and foster and promote public-private partnership and collaboration in sustainable WASH service delivery.

Participation, Categories and parameters

The competition is open to all bonefide practicing journalists in the mainstream media in Uganda. Focus will be on journalists who write or broadcast original investigative reports on WASH issues.

"The WASH Media Awards intend to provide recognition to those journalists who deliberately and consistently make public awareness of water, sanitation, and hygiene and their related development issues a priority," Kabarungi said.  The awards are targeting mainstream media with specific focus on TV, print, online, radio and magazines.

The entries should have been published between June 2015 and August 2016.  The awards gala will be on October 17 at Kampala Serena Hotel.