An investigative story by SolaceBase Communications, one of Nigeria’s leading online publications has emerged 1st runner-up in the online category at the 2024 Journalists of the Year Award by the Africa Media Development Foundation, (AMDF).
Titled “How Benue Government’s Poor Investment In Primary Healthcare Is Worsening Maternal and Child Mortality,” the story was written by Arinze Chijioke under the Wole Soyinka Centre for Investigative Journalism (WSCIJ) under the collaborative Media Engagement for Development, Inclusion and Accountability Project (CMEDIA) funded by the MacArthur Foundation.
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The story looked at how maternal and child mortality has continued to worsen as the state government fails to invest in healthcare provision while also exposing a culture of failure to release budgetary allocations for healthcare.
Chijioke was nominated alongside Abdulrasheed Hammad of The Cable-who won the category and Kei Emmanuel Duku of One Citizen newspaper, South Sudan for the online category of the award.
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Winners of various categories of the award were announced during the 8th Africa Conference on Development Journalism(#ACDJ2024), which held at Asaa Pyramid Hotel Kaduna, Nigeria, from 4th to 5th December 2024.
In her address, Executive Director of the AMDF, Sekyen Dadik said that the finalists, who were chosen from a highly competitive pool of submissions, have demonstrated exceptional skill, dedication and commitment to reporting on critical issues that affect the continent.
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“Comments from the panel of judges indicate a tough process to arrive at the decision, but it also means your story is among the best of the entries received in this year’s contest, “read a notice of award selection.
Speaking further, she said, “We are incredibly proud of all the finalists and their contributions to journalism. Their work exemplifies the importance of holding powerful interests to account and shedding light on critical issues that impact our communities,”.
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The AMDF Award aims to celebrate and encourage high-quality journalism that addresses development challenges and promotes transparency, accountability, and good governance in Africa.
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