The Ghana Journalist Association (GJA) has launched the 26th GJA Media Awards in Accra to reward deserving journalists in 2022.
This year’s awards, dubbed: “Walking The Path Towards Economic Recovery: The Role Of The Media”, is scheduled to come off on November 12 at the Kempinski Gold Coast City Accra.
The awards ceremony was, however, last held in 2020 but controversy surrounding the recent GJA elections did not permit the organisation of the awards in 2021.
Awards, criteria
The competition is opened to members of the association working in the print media, broadcast media and online and entries cover works published from January 2021 to December 2021.
The eligible members must also be must be in good standing with regards to the payment of membership dues among others.
Award categories include best in; news reporting, features, documentaries and columns.
Furthermore, awards would be given to best journalists in specific areas such as sports, health, education, investigative journalism, arts and entertainment, business and economic reporting, environment and science, agriculture and food security, democracy and good governance, and gender
Also, special awards would be given to journalists who report on areas such as disability, road safety, illegal mining and AfCFTA
There would also be the GJA Komla Dumor Most Promising Journalist of the Year award which was instituted in honour of Komla Dumor.
Aspirants of that award must be members of the association with not more than three years working experience.
Entries for various categories would therefore be made would be made available tomorrow (Thursday, September 1, 2022) on the association’s website.
Duty
Speaking at the launch, the president of the GJA, Albert Dwumfour, said the awards ceremony was further proof of the association’s commitment recognise and motivate deserving members.
He maintained that it was the duty of journalists to ensure that government or state institutions does not spend outside their budget or engage in any frivolous expenditure in order to help the government achieve fiscal stability.
“I hold the view that, as journalists, we have a role to play in ensuring that the economy is stabilized for our common good. We can do this in many ways,” he said.
Mr Dwumfour, therefore, urged all journalists who believed their works met the criteria set out by the Awards Committee to file their entries, assuring that the process would be fair and transparent.
Awards Committee
As part of the launch, a seven-member awards committee was inaugurated with a mandate to evaluate all entries and stories to select qualified nominees for the various categories.
Chaired by a former General Manager of the Ghana News Agency (GNA), Yaa Oforiwaa Asare-Peasah, other members of the committee are a former Night Editor of the Daily Graphic, Vance Azu; the president of the PRINGPAG; Andrew Edwin Arthur and the General Manager of the Campus Broadcasting Services (CBS) of the Directorate of Public Affairs, University of Cape Coast, Kwabena Antwi-Konadu .
Others are; John Vigah (New Times Corporation); Roger Quartey, (Head of production of UTV); and Loretta Vanderpuye, a regional director of GBC.
Mrs Asare-Peasah, said the committee was committed to undertake their duties diligently adding; “We hope for a successful completion of the assignment within the timeframe given”.
She also called for support from all stakeholders, including suggestions, credible supporting evidence and pieces of information to enable the committee deliver their mandate effectively.
Advice
A former president of the GJA, Ransford Tetteh, who chaired the occasion, encouraged all journalists to showcase and avail themselves to the awards.
He also advised journalists to always be fair in their reporting and not lose their ethics in their quests to always be the first to break news.
