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BIGSAS Journalist Award for Birte Mensing, Ruona Meyer, and Bettina Rühl
08.11.2024
Winners Birte Mensing (left) and Ruona Meyer (right). Bettina Rühl, who also came second, was connected online.
On November 7, 2024, the Africa Multiple Cluster of Excellence at the University of Bayreuth awarded the prestigious "BIGSAS Journalist Award" for the sixth time, honoring outstanding journalistic contributions to differentiated reporting on Africa in German-language print media. The 2024 award recipients are Birte Mensing, Ruona Meyer, and Bettina Ruehl.
The jury, consisting of alumni from the BIGSAS Graduate School and members of the Africa Multiple Cluster of Excellence, reviewed and evaluated 45 submissions. After initially creating a shortlist of twelve articles, the winners were soon determined: Birte Mensing received the first prize for her report "With Green Energy into the Future," and second prizes were awarded to Ruona Meyer and Bettina Ruehl.
This year, the jury particularly appreciated contributions that provide a detailed look at challenges and solutions on the African continent. Birte Mensing's winning report describes how Kenya already meets almost all of its electricity needs with renewable energies, making the country a model of energy efficiency for East Africa. The runner-up, Ruona Meyer, demonstrates in her article "How a Startup in Senegal Produces and Markets Regional Baby Food Using Social Media" how Senegal's first organic baby food startup uses popular technologies to address a significant nutritional gap in the country. The other runner-up article, "Ed-Tech in Ghana: Mobile Computer Lab and an App Enhance Equal Opportunities at Schools" by Bettina Ruehl, discusses a company that enables students to access knowledge through mobile infrastructure and an app that also works offline.
During the formal program, the prizes, a statue by artist Walter Maponga, and prize money of €1,500 for the first place and €750 for the second places were presented. The award was sponsored by the Africa Multiple Cluster of Excellence at the University of Bayreuth, which has included the Bayreuth Graduate International School of African Studies—shortly BIGSAS—since 2019. "We are very pleased that we were able to continue the tradition of the BIGSAS Journalist Award. The prize, which recognizes nuanced reporting on Africa, also reflects the cluster's commitment to breaking stereotypes and opening new perspectives on the African continent and its diaspora," explains Prof. Dr. Rüdiger Seesemann, spokesperson for the Africa Multiple Cluster. The prize money was donated by the University Association Bayreuth.
The keynote speech at the award ceremony was given by actor Eugene Boateng. In his compelling remarks, the German-Ghanaian spoke about his personal experiences as a Black person in German society and the entertainment industry. He emphasized the importance of reflecting the diversity of German society in the media landscape. The musical frame was provided by Sona Diabaté, a singer from Guinea, who is world-famous for her Griot music—a traditional West African singing style with epic texts.
Honoring Exceptional Journalistic Achievements
Since 2011, the BIGSAS Journalist Award has recognized journalists whose works deepen knowledge about Africa in the German-speaking public. According to the jury, the contributions that made the 2024 shortlist of the BIGSAS Journalist Awards help to raise awareness of the complex developments and the cultural, political, and social diversity of the African continent.
The journalism award was initiated in 2010 by the Bayreuth International Graduate School of African Studies (BIGSAS)—an interdisciplinary graduate college at the University of Bayreuth dedicated to researching Africa. With the BIGSAS Journalist Award, the graduate school wanted to emphasize the important role of journalism in conveying knowledge and understanding about Africa. Since 2019, BIGSAS has been part of the Africa Multiple cluster, a research consortium funded by the German Research Foundation, which has also taken over the organization of the BIGSAS Journalist Awards since 2019.
1rst: Birte Mensing
Birte Mensing lives in Kenya and reports as a freelance journalist for various German and European media from East, West, and Central Africa. Previously, she worked in the ZDF studio in Nairobi. She focuses on issues of justice, especially in politics, economics, and the environment. The 30-year-old learned her craft at the Evangelical School of Journalism and studied European Governance in Münster and Enschede, Netherlands. She is currently expanding her knowledge in the "African Politics" program at the "School of Pan-African Thought" in London.
"With Green Energy into the Future" - This print article was published in Frings Magazine on November 2, 2023; Link: https://magazin.misereor.de/frings-das-misereor-magazin-2-2023-fair-ist-mehr/68522455/11
2nd:Ruona Meyer
Ruona Meyer is a Nigerian-German investigative journalist who reports on social and political topics in West Africa. She has over 19 years of experience as a media trainer in the UK, the Netherlands, and Germany and is currently pursuing a PhD in investigative cross-border journalism. Ruona has been living in Trier since 2015 and serves on the jury for the Climate Journalism Award of the European Journalism Center and the IJ4EU Freelancer Support Scheme for collaborative teams across Europe. She was Nigeria's first nominee for an International Emmy (2019) for her BBC-published documentary on cough syrup dealers.
"How a Startup in Senegal Produces Regional Baby Food and Markets it Through Social Media" -This onine article was published on RiffReporter on January 27, 2023; Link: https://www.riffreporter.de/de/international/senegal-sdg-baby-kinder-nahrung-social-media
2nd: Bettina Rühl
Bettina Rühl is a freelance journalist focusing primarily on Africa. Since April 2011, she has lived in the Kenyan capital Nairobi, and since 2022, she has also lived in Cologne. Her features, reports, and stories appear in various ARD radio programs, magazines, and newspapers. Her reporting from and about Africa has earned her multiple awards, and she was honored with the Federal Cross of Merit in 2020. Bettina Rühl is the chairperson of the correspondent network weltreporter.net.
"Ed-Tech in Ghana: Mobile Computer Lab and an App Increase Equality of Opportunity at Schools" - This article was published at RiffReporter.de on April 28, 2023; Link: https://www.riffreporter.de/de/international/ghana-ed-tech-bildung-technologie-chancengleichheit-computerunterricht-schulen