The Guardian announces journalism competition winners
24 November 2008
HIV
prevention amongst Indian men who have sex with men and children’s commitment to
adapting to climate change in the Philippines were the themes of the final top
two winning articles in
The Guardian
International Development Journalism competition, sponsored by DFID.
Aspiring writer Sylvia Rowley, overall winner in the amateur category,
described how community-based organisations were helping to promote safe sex
amongst homosexuals, transsexuals and sex workers in India. Sylvia gathered the
information for her winning article whilst visiting Andhra Pradesh with the
HIV/AIDS Alliance.
Journalist Ben Willis, winner of the competition’s professional category, used a
fact-finding visit to the Philippines, courtesy of children’s charity Plan, to
write up his winning article. He described how it is the children in the
Philippines who are leading the effort to mitigate against climate change in the
country.
The
competition was designed to enthuse and motivate more people to write about the
challenges faced by the poorest people in developing countries.
International Development Secretary Douglas Alexander said:
"I was delighted by the high calibre of the entries and congratulate both overall winners on their outstanding contributions. Informed and balanced journalism plays a crucial role in raising the profile of international development. I am sure this competition has inspired the entrants and other UK journalists to write more about the issues surrounding global poverty."
The competition, developed in co-operation with Marie Stopes International (MSI) and sponsored by the Department for International Development, attracted more than 400 entries and 20,000 unique visits to its website since its launch earlier in the year.
Michael Holscher, Director of External Affairs at MSI said:
“The response to this unique journalist competition far exceeded our expectations when we conceived the competition many months ago. On behalf of all our NGO partners, we congratulate the winners for inspiring both readers and writers alike to seek out more in-depth understanding of development issues that might otherwise be forgotten.”
