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Internews in the Press
Winners of the STOP TB Award for Excellence in Reporting on Tuberculosis Announced in Mexico[Neway Tsegaye of Ethiopia, winner of the 3rd prize, is one of Internews' first print trainees in Ethiopia.] December 3, 2009 Cancun, Mexico -- The Stop TB Partnership today announced the winners of the Award for Excellence in Reporting on Tuberculosis 2009. The award, which is supported by the Lilly MDR-TB Partnership, recognizes outstanding reporting and commentary in print and on the web that materially increases the public's knowledge and understanding of tuberculosis (TB) and multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB), in countries affected by the disease. The first place winner, who will receive an award of US$ 3000, is Charles Mpaka of Malawi. Mr Mpaka’s winning article, "A woman's face in tuberculosis", which appeared in The Daily Times (Blantyre Newspapers), focuses on the life of a nurse who works on a TB ward. Through her eyes we experience the devastation the disease causes in Malawi and the special burden it places on women, who are vulnerable to the illness and also the main caregivers of TB patients. Second place, with an award of US$ 2000, goes to Carlos Henrique Fioravanti of Brazil. His article "Mortal Drama", which was published in Pesquisa magazine, warns of the spread of dangerous drug-resistant strains of TB throughout the world, in particular, in Brazil. The third place winner, who will receive a $US 1000 award, is Neway Tsegaye of Ethiopia, whose article "TB Awareness and Treatment Challenges" appeared in Addis Lissan News. His article offers a window into the lives of TB patients in Addis Ababa, and also warns about the dangers of incomplete treatment, which can lead to drug resistance. All winners of the 2009 award are based in low- and middle-income countries*. For the 2010 award the Stop TB Partnership will open a second category of awards for journalists writing from high-income countries. Articles considered for the 2010 awards must be published between 1 March 2009 and 31 March 2010 in a general circulation newspaper, magazine or web news vehicle. The deadline for entries for the 2010 award is 30 April. The Stop TB Partnership, which is hosted by the World Health Organization in Geneva, Switzerland, consists of more then 900 international organizations, countries, donors from the public and private sectors, and nongovernmental and governmental organizations that are working together to eliminate TB. The Partnership's Global Plan to Stop TB (2006-2015) sets forth a roadmap for halving TB prevalence and deaths compared with 1990 levels by 2015. The Lilly MDR-TB Partnership is a public-private initiative that encompasses global health and relief organizations, academic institutions and private companies and is led by Eli Lilly and Company. Its mission is to address the expanding crisis of multi-drug resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB). The partnership is pursuing a comprehensive strategy to fight MDR-TB through increasing drug supply at concessionary prices; research; providing training in prevention, treatment, and surveillance; promoting awareness and community support programs and sharing drug manufacturing technology with nations most at risk of MDR-TB. |
