A Social Voices report titled “A Non-Profit is Using Artificial Intelligence to Link Blood Donors” by Tijani Abdulkabeer has won the 2022 Emerging Health Technologies (EHTs) Media Award of Excellence in the online category. The report was produced in partnership with Nigeria Health Watch through the Solutions Journalism Network, a nonprofit organization dedicated to rigorous and compelling reporting on responses to social problems.
The EHTs Media Award was initiated in October 2022 by the Platform for Dialogue and Action on Health Technologies in Africa (Health Tech Platform) – a project of the African Institute for Development Policy (AFIDEP). This initiative aims to support quality science journalism in Africa, particularly on emerging technologies that have the potential to address the continent’s pressing health challenges.
Speaking on the importance of the EHTs Media Award, Dr Eliya Zulu, AFIDEP’s Executive Director underscored that the media is crucial in reaching the public and helping interpret evidence. Additionally, they play a critical role in countering misinformation and disinformation.
“AFIDEP, as an organisation that promotes evidence in decision-making, conducts this award to strengthen the capacity of the media to use evidence in analysing and reporting issues in the development of these technologies to the public, including the policymakers,” said Dr Eliya Zulu.
He further noted that the role of the media in translating evidence on emerging health technologies could contribute to accelerating their development, which, if well developed, could help address health challenges on the continent.
Meanwhile, the same report was shortlisted for the Centre for Journalism Innovation & Development (CJID) Alfred Opubor Next-Gen Campus Reporters Awards.
In a press release published in the early hours of Friday, November 25, Abdulkabeer, was announced as one of the top three finalists in the health reporting category.
According to the organizers, this year’s edition of the awards generated 164 entries from campus journalists in 53 tertiary institutions in Nigeria. The southwest region generated the most entries with 74, followed by the northwest with 38, north central with 21, south-south with 8, and southeast and northeast with 6 entries each.
Winners of the different categories and the overall best campus journalist for the year will be revealed at the Awards ceremony on the December 2, at the Treasure Suites Hotel, Central Business District, Abuja.
