MISA Zambia launches 2017 Media Awards

The MISA Zambia Media Awards are an annual event which honour journalists, individuals and institutions that have made a significant contribution towards the advancement of media freedom and access to information in Zambia.

The awards were established in 2002 to honour people and organisations that have made a mark in ensuring that the country’s democracy grows through entrenchment of values of freedom of expression and of the media.

The MISA Zambia Media Awards Gala is a high profile social event which attracts the presence of leaders in Government, the diplomatic corps, civil society and the corporate sector, who gather to recognise the role of the media in promoting democracy and good governance.

A call is hereby made for entries into the 2017 MISA Media Awards which will be held on Friday, 5th May, 2017. The entry period is from Wednesday, March 22nd – Saturday, April 22nd, 2017. Entry details and award categories are as follows:

Best Economic Reporting Award
(Print, Radio and Television) This category recognises informative and objective reports on various macro-economic fundamentals and aspects related to the Zambian economy at large. The reportage must involve expert voices as well as the ordinary citizen as the final beneficiary. Reportage may Examples of coverage considered under this category may include (but not limited to) unemployment, supply and demand, growth, inflation, as well as considerations for monetary or fiscal policy and international trade among others.

Best Business and Capital Markets Reporting Award
(Print, radio and television) This award is aimed at creating awareness about business, entrepreneurship the Zambian capital markets and will recognise reportage that is informative, accurate and presented creatively. The reportage must shade light on developments in the business and capital markets sector as well as how the capital markets operate and benefit the country, citizens and the corporate world.

Best Insurance Reporting Award
(Print, radio, television) The category recognises innovative and informative reportage and news coverage on insurance as well as its impact on economic development as it helps to foster a good environment for business and safeguards investments. The prospective winners will be expected to demonstrate excellent research and balanced, factual presentation of the various types of insurance as related to the particular story under consideration

Best Standardisation Reporting Award
(Print, radio, television) The category recognises informative, factual reportage on issues around the importance, promotion and enforcement of standards for various products and services in Zambia as provided for under the Standards Act. The reportage is expected to innovatively disseminate information on need for adherence to standards in relation to the welfare of the consumers at large.

Best Telecommunications Reporting Award
(Print, Radio and Television) The Best Telecommunications Reporting award is meant to recognise reportage that highlights the benefits of the telecommunication in Zambia, seeks to promote access to telecommunication through addressing issues of policy, laws and the economic environment in Zambia.

Best Anti-Corruption Reporting Award
(Print, Radio and Television) This award is aimed at creating awareness about corruption in Zambia and will recognise reportage that is informative, accurate and presented creatively while bringing out corruptive activities and their effects on the economy.

Best Hospitality and Tourism Reporting Award
(Print, Radio and Television) This award category recognises reportage that promotes tourism in Zambia. This could include Zambia’s tourism destinations, attractions, tourism products, tour operators, festivals and events, and marketing activities or campaigns that promote tourism. Articles must show how the campaign or activity positively impacted and/or increased tourism or raised the profile of tourism in Zambia.

Best Shelter and Habitation Reporting Award
(Print, Radio and Television) This award recognises journalistic excellence in housing, shelter or habitation reporting in Zambia. This award is based on journalistic excellence including newsworthiness, understanding and analysis of issues impacting the housing/shelter situation in Zambia.

Best Land Management Reporting Award
(Print, Radio and Television) This category recognises coverage that is innovative and analytical, and seeks to promote pro-poor land policies and laws, access and ownership of land and transparency and accountability in land administration in Zambia, with a view to protecting land tenure security for Zambians.

Best Environmental Reporting Award
(Print, Radio, Television) This award will recognise reporting on environmental issues in Zambia including pollution, forestry, fisheries, conservation and climate change in a creative manner.

Best Water and Sanitation Reporting Award
(Print, radio, television) This category aims to reward innovative and informative reportage on water and sanitation in Zambia in relation to general welfare. The winning report will be expected to disseminate well-researched information on the regulation of the water and sanitation sector, challenges, opportunities as well as consumer rights.

Best Energy Reporting Award
(Print, Radio and Television) The purpose of this award is to help encourage journalists to report creatively and correctly about Energy issues. This reportage could be on alternative means of energy such as bio-mass, geothermal energy, sun, wind and rain. It should also include investments made in this area and how they affect and influence the country’s development.

Best Agriculture Reporting Award
(Print, Radio and Television) This category aims to recognise innovative reporting on agriculture and related issues. Entries in this category should highlight the importance and contribution of agriculture to the Zambian economy, challenges and the general welfare of farmers in Zambia. The entries should be informative and have factual information.

Best Health Reporting Award
(Print, Radio and Television) The award will recognise reporting that is innovative around health related issues at various levels in Zambia.

Best HIV/AIDS Reporting Award
(Print, Radio and Television) This award will recognise reporting that is innovative around issues of HIV and AIDS prevention, promoting positive living and adherence to treatment, voluntary counselling and testing including access to treatment facilities.

Best Gender Reporting Award
(Print, Radio and Television) The Best Gender Reporting Award will acknowledge reportage that addresses gender disparities, encourages equality, discourages abuse of one gender by the other and explains to the audience the true meaning of gender and how it can benefit the country. Its main purpose is to address gender disparities and the violence that the country is now experiencing especially against women and the girl child.

Best Sports Reporting Award
(Print, Radio and Television) This award will recognise excellent reportage in the area of sports that espouses the attributes of creativity and factual reporting/cross check. The category is open to reportage on any sports discipline and not only soccer.

Best Photo – Journalist Award
(Television Photo-Journalism and Still Photo-Journalism) This award is aimed at recognising best pictures both television and still. The picture or shot must be innovative tell a story about issues affecting the Zambian people. The picture must be of high quality and meet minimum professional video/still picture standards.

Best Radio Documentary Award
(First, Second and Third Prizes) This category is for Community Radio Producers. Documentaries submitted must be of 30 minutes duration, original works. Documentaries must have been produced in English.

Award Rules and Eligibility

1. The Media Awards are open to both private and public media of all forms that publish to the Zambian populace. Eligible individuals or institutions should be Zambian.
2. Entries will be judged by an independent body of judges drawn from well-seasoned media experts and academicians in Zambia who have previously held positions of high esteem in their career.
3. The right to withhold award prizes is reserved if no entries are considered by the Judges to merit a winner.
4. Award entrants must show proof of publication of stories submitted for adjudication. This could include a copy or the paper in which the story was published, a signed letter from the media institution confirming publication or a URL to a reputable media publication where the story is appearing.
5. Entries should be clearly marked as to which category is being entered for and the name of the entrant including the organisation/media house working for.
6. All entries must include a one paragraph profile on the individual entering the award.

Entry Procedure

Hardcopy entries should be submitted to: The 15th MISA Zambia Media Awards Committee, C/O MISA Zambia, P.O. Box 32295, Lusaka or hand delivered to the MISA Zambia Secretariat on Plot 3814 Martin Mwamba Road, Olympia Park, Lusaka. The Deadline for submissions is Midnight, Friday, 21st April, 2017.