The Centre for Journalism Innovation and Development (CJID) has announced the finalists for its 2026 Excellence in Media Awards, recognising outstanding journalism and public-interest reporting across West Africa.
The third edition of the annual awards, which began in 2024, attracted 424 entries from 277 journalists across the region, representing a 54.2 per cent increase from the 275 entries recorded in 2025.
According to CJID, the submissions came from nine West African countries: Ghana, Nigeria, Senegal, The Gambia, Sierra Leone, Côte d’Ivoire, Liberia, Guinea and Benin.
The entries underwent an initial screening, which produced the top five submissions in each of the eight award categories. An independent jury of experienced journalists subsequently assessed the shortlisted works before selecting the finalists.
Hannah Ajakaiye, founding editor of FactsMatter NG, chaired the jury. Other members included Maxime Domegni, Francophone Africa Editor for the Global Investigative Journalism Network (GIJN); Ajibola Amzat, Africa Editor at the Centre for Collaborative Investigative Journalism (CCIJ); Kent Mensah, Chief Ghana Correspondent for The Africa Report; Manasseh Awuni, investigative journalist and editor; and Amaka Okoye, Bureau Chief for Deutsche Welle’s (DW) Studio Lagos.
The judges independently evaluated the entries based on accuracy, fairness, originality and innovation, depth of research, quality of writing, public significance and adherence to ethical standards.
According to CJID, the jury’s final selection prioritised stories that combined strong storytelling with rigorous reporting.
The organisation noted that the entries addressed critical issues affecting communities across West Africa, including investigations into cross-border rosewood cartels, gold exploitation and shared regional health challenges.
Awards Attract 424 Entries from Nine West African Countries
The 2026 awards featured submissions from journalists working across nine countries, reflecting the range of public-interest issues covered by the media in the region.
Among the selected investigations are reports on alleged killings in police custody in Ghana, sexual violence in a Nigerian university, the illegal trade in endangered grey parrots and the exploitation of workers in the Sahel’s gold industry.
Other reports examine lead poisoning linked to battery recycling in Nigeria, the spread of child sexual abuse materials through Telegram networks, and the impact of environmental and economic challenges on communities.
The finalists emerged from eight categories: Health Reporting, Community Reporting, Human Rights Reporting, Social Accountability, Climate Change Reporting, Solutions Journalism, Fact-Checking, and Sexual and Gender-Based Violence (SGBV).
The finalists announced by CJID include; Death in detention: Suspected killings in Ghana’s police custody – Edmund Agyemang Boateng (Media Foundation for West Africa – MFWA), FUOYE lecturer ‘rapes’ student, then passes her details to colleague to ‘speak One-on-One’ – Sodeeq Atanda (Foundation for Investigative Journalism – FIJ), Inside Nigeria’s criminal rosewood economy, Al’amin Umar and Saduwo Banyawa (HumAngle Media), From smoke to safety: How a Kano community built its own lifeline for mothers – Victor Christopher (Nigeria Info / Arewa Radio), Inside the multi-million-dollar Gambia gov’t venture that made the president’s nephew a major food importer – Mustapha K. Darboe (The Republic).
The lottery bonanza – Seth J. Bokpe, William Nlanjerbor Jalulah and Philip Teye Agbove (Media Foundation for West Africa – MFWA), The Hausa Telegram Network selling child sexual abuse material – Al’amin Umar (HumAngle Media), Leukaemia: Last chance abroad: Agony of Ghanaians diagnosed with blood cancer – Emmanuel Dzivenu (Joy News).
INVESTIGATION: Despite being illegal, endangered grey parrots sold openly on Nigeria’s social media, e-commerce platforms – Janefrances Chibundu (The Cable), The gold slaves of the Sahel – Abdullah Tijani (The Liberalist), Exposing how website uses unverifiable experts and unsupported claims to market unregistered prostatitis product – Emmanuel Oluwadola (RoundCheck), The pothole fillers of Adamawa and Gombe highway – Saduwo Banyawa (HumAngle Media).
Loan clubs help farmers save money and forests – Tina S. Mehnpaine (Daily Observer Newspaper), INVESTIGATION: Lead In Their Blood: How battery recyclers are poisoning Nigerians – Oladeinde Olawoyin and Folashade Ogunrinde (Premium Times), Solar solutions – Shereefdeen Ahmad (The Liberalist), Disinformation: Three TikTok videos spread false statements attributed to Emmanuel Macron about Africa (French) – Amenan Maria Eduige Kouakou (Influence Mag), Jilli: Investigating the market airstrike – Atsahyel Aaron (Daily Trust / Trust TV).
Eight Categories Feature in the 2026 Awards
The eight categories recognise different forms of journalism, including reporting on health, human rights, climate change, social accountability and community issues.
The selected entries also demonstrate the range of approaches journalists have taken to investigate issues affecting communities, from environmental degradation and exploitation to public health concerns and digital disinformation.
Commenting on the quality of submissions, jury chair Hannah Ajakaiye said the entries demonstrated strong reporting, particularly in social accountability, environmental issues and human rights.
“This year’s entries showed particular strength in reporting on social accountability, the environment and human rights,” she said.
She added that the jury observed improved understanding of solutions journalism, especially in reports examining how communities responded to challenges and the evidence of results from such interventions.
“We also saw a better understanding of solutions journalism, particularly in stories that examined how people responded to a problem and what the evidence showed about the results. We see room for improvement in fact-checking and in the coverage of sexual and gender-based violence.”
Jury Praises Strong Reporting, Identifies Areas for Improvement
Despite the quality of submissions in several categories, the jury identified areas where journalists could improve their reporting.
Ajakaiye said fact-checking and coverage of sexual and gender-based violence required further attention, suggesting that journalists needed to strengthen their approaches to these areas.
The jury also decided not to select a winner for the Editor of the Year category, explaining that the limited number of submissions did not sufficiently meet the award’s evaluation criteria.
The selection process involved an independent assessment of the entries, with judges considering accuracy, fairness, originality, depth of research, public significance and ethical standards.
CJID said the final selections reflected stories that combined strong storytelling with rigorous reporting and demonstrated the importance of journalism in addressing issues affecting communities across the region.
Winners to Be Announced in Abuja
The finalists will be honoured at the CJID Awards ceremony on Wednesday, November 25, 2026, at the Abuja Continental Hotel.
The ceremony forms part of the organisation’s Media and Development Conference, where winners and runners-up in each category will be announced.
Congratulating the finalists, CJID Chief Executive Officer, Dapo Olorunyomi, commended journalists who submitted their work from across West Africa, highlighting the importance of their contributions despite the challenges facing the media industry.
“Every year, these awards remind us of the important work journalists continue to do across our region, often under difficult circumstances and with limited resources. The stories recognised this year reflect the courage, persistence and public service that sustain journalism in West Africa. We congratulate all the finalists and thank everyone who submitted their work. We also appreciate the independent jury for the time and care invested in the selection process.”
The 2026 Excellence in Media Awards are supported by the Royal Norwegian Embassy in Abuja and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of the Netherlands.
CJID said the partners’ support reflects their continued commitment to strengthening journalism, promoting public accountability and supporting independent media across West Africa.
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