Geneva, 2 April 2019 – The RBM Partnership to End Malaria today announced the eleven journalists selected to participate in its inaugural media fellowship.  

To mark the 20th anniversary of the RBM Partnership to End Malaria, the first-ever RBM Partnership Media Fellowship was launched in November 2018. The programme aims to effectively engage journalists in countries with a high burden of malaria by promoting a greater understanding of the impact of this deadly disease and what more needs to be done to end malaria. The fellowship is also designed to share expert knowledge on the fight against malaria and develop collaborative relationships between journalists and organizations associated with the RBM Partnership.

The Partnership opened the fellowship to journalists from across the 11 countries with the highest burden of malaria – the African countries of Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Democratic Republic of Congo, Ghana, Mali, Mozambique, Niger, Nigeria, Tanzania and Uganda, and India.

In its first year, over 140 journalists submitted applications for the fellowship. A panel of representatives from RBM Partnership global organizations and the RBM Partnership Secretariat reviewed and selected the finalists.

Representing a broad range of influential media organisations, the following journalists from each of the eleven countries have been selected to participate in the 2019 RBM Media Fellowship programme:

  • Aissta Ahamadou, Mali, Mikado FM
  • Oumarou Brah Soulemane, Niger, L’Independant Plus
  • Appolonia Adeyemi, Nigeria, The New Telegraph
  • Céline Iboudo, Burkina Faso, Radiodiffusion Télévision du Burkina
  • Esther Nakkazi, Uganda, Scidev.net
  • Charles Mangwiro, Mozambique, Radio Mozambique
  • Walter Yuven Fondzenyuy, Cameroon, Sky Sports Community Radio
  • Eunice Menka, Ghana, Ghana Business News
  • Busabahaka Mitima Delachance, Democratic Republic of Congo, Freelance
  • Daniel Benno Msangya, Tanzania, Freelance
  • Anonna Dutt, India, The Hindustan Times

 

Programme package

The media fellows will attend an intensive media training programme in Geneva alongside the World Health Assembly in May. This workshop will provide fellows with the opportunity to learn from leading malaria experts from across the Partnership about the challenges and opportunities that exist to end malaria, as well as the latest tools, strategies and resources being used or needed in the fight to make continued progress against malaria.

Following this programme, the fellows will pursue further research into malaria-related issues in their home countries and collaborate with local partner organisations. Over the course of the year, the RBM Partnership will support these fellows to develop in-depth articles on the impact that malaria has on their communities and what is needed to make a real difference in the fight against the disease.

Yacine Djibo, Co-Chair, Strategic Communications Partner Committee, RBM Partnership to End Malaria says:

 “The RBM Partnership recognises the influence that journalists can have to inform and educate their audiences about malaria. We are looking forward to working collaboratively with this group of talented reporters over the next year to develop their knowledge of the key challenges and opportunities to eliminating malaria, and to learn from each of them, too.”

Michal Fishman, Co-Chair, Strategic Communications Partner Committee, RBM Partnership to End Malaria adds:

“This year’s fellows have demonstrated a strong commitment to the fight against malaria, an impressive understanding of the broader local context and healthcare landscape, and a high-degree of creativity in their reporting. In fact, the overall standard of applications was astounding and selecting just eleven fellows was a real challenge. We would like to thank all applicants for their dedication and enthusiasm and encourage each candidate to continue reporting on this important issue to end malaria for good.”

Support for journalists

The RBM Partnership is committed to supporting journalists writing stories about malaria, its impact on families and communities, and the opportunity the world has to end the disease. Journalists developing a story on malaria are invited to reach out to the Partnership for comments, interviews or other supporting materials at RBMPartnership@grayling.com