The International Centre for Journalists (ICFJ), the ONE Campaign, and the Elliott family are pleased to announce a call for entries for the Michael Elliott Prize for Excellence in African Storytelling.
The award honours up-and-coming journalists in Africa who strive to empower people's voices and shine a light on the transformative change taking place on the continent. The winning entries must represent innovative journalistic work published between 1 December 2021, and 1 December 2022. Winners will be selected based on the quality of their articles and the impact their work has had on communities. We welcome excellent work in all media, especially those that demonstrate analytical skills as well as excellent writing skills.
The winners will receive a cash prize of $5,000 and a personalised crystal award. The winners will have the opportunity to spend up to two weeks at The Economist's headquarters in London, or to complete a personalised study tour of US newsrooms.
Eligibility
- The competition is open to English-speaking journalists working in Africa for print, broadcast and online media. Candidates should have no more than 10 years of journalistic experience.
- Applicants must submit a published piece that exemplifies Africa through thoughtful reporting and excellent storytelling. We are looking for impactful investigative or explanatory pieces, especially those that illuminate transformative change in Africa.
- A copy of the published story or broadcast clip must be submitted in English. Works in other languages must include English translations. We welcome submissions from print, broadcast, or digital journalists. Multimedia submissions can include web, audio, video, visual, or mixed media.
- The story submitted must be published between 1 December 2021 and 1 December 2022.
A distinguished international jury, including media leaders from the US, UK and Africa, will select the winners. We will contact all candidates to notify them of their status by spring 2023.
The application form for the 2023 cycle is available at here. The deadline for submitting applications is 31 January 2023.
About the award
The Prize was established in honour of Michael Elliott, an editor, philanthropist and former director of ICFJ, whose life was a testament to the power of storytelling to bear witness to and improve the human condition. Elliott served as a distinguished editor at The Economist, Newsweek, and Time before becoming CEO of ONE. In 2016, he had spoken of his dream of establishing an award that would bring together his belief in great journalism with his commitment to progress in Africa. This prestigious annual award honours emerging journalists in Africa who strive to empower people's voices and illuminate the transformative change taking place on the continent.
Among the award winners previous include Mercy Juma and Dorcas Wangira from Kenya; Kiki Mordi, Abubakar Ibrahim, and Zainab Bala from Nigeria; and Bernadette Vivuya from the Democratic Republic of Congo. Wangira's award-winning story, "The App and The Cut" covered the damage caused by female genital mutilation and the hope offered by five high school girls who invented an app to connect vulnerable girls to resources and rescue centres. Juma's story, "Teen Mums of Kwale," tells of primary school girls whose families make the controversial choice to let them use contraceptives, even though the practice is taboo in the Muslim communities of Kwale County, Kenya. Ibrahim's work, "All That Was Familiar" chronicles the struggle of two women - one from Cameroon and one from Nigeria - to find their loved ones who have been internally displaced by the Boko Haram insurgency. Mordi's story, "Sex by Degree" exposes sexual harassment in African universities. Read more about Mordi, the winner of the 2020 prizehere, and Bala and Vivuya, the winners of the 2021 prizehere. Read more about Khalid Bencherif and Nalova Akua, the winners of the 2022 awards, here.
On 22 September 2023, Khalid Bencherif and Nalova Akua took part in a virtual awards presentation held at The Economist's headquarters in London. The comments on the winners' awards are as follows.
