The Annual SADC Media Awards Regional Adjudicators have successfully pressed for the review of competition criteria and the broadening of participation by regional journalists as of 2014. At the recent Regional Adjudication Committee meeting held in Maseru, Lesotho, agreement was reached which effectively shifts away from the sole consideration of submissions in the organisation’s working languages: English, French, and Portuguese. Next year submissions for consideration will be expected from print, broadcast, and new media journalists and photographers of works that have been previously publicized by practitioners from the sub-region, including those written and broadcast in any of the many languages spoken by the over 400 million regional citizens. Country coordinators will be responsible for ensuring that transcripts are translated prior to submission. The SADC Media Awards were created to confer honours on media professionals from bona-fide organizations whose focus falls within the SADC’s “Regional Integration” theme. While some believe that the ICT sector is critical to achieving the promotion of this theme, the organization’s structure does not have a Council of Ministers for stakeholder’s from the sector to report to, and hence does not receive the recognition and support it derserves. This prompted Lesotho’s Minister for Communications, Science and Technology, Mr. Tseliso Mokhosi to take up the challenge of inviting regional sector colleagues to discuss a way forward in ensuring that effective representation is upscaled. Minister Mokhosi officiated prior to the commencement of this year’s adjudication, where Mozambique won the video report category, Botswana the photograph of the year, and Malawi the print media article for 2013. Winners will receive their prizes at the next Summit Meeting of Heads of State which is to take place in August in Malawi.

 

 

 

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