A senior reporter with Nigerian Tribune, Justice Nwafor, has been adjudged one of the winners of the Prevent Epidemics Naija awards.
Nwafor won the print/digital news category of the awards, Aneta Felix of TV360 won the TV report category, Chibuike Utaka of Talk Your Own won the radio category while Victor Azodoh won the social media category.Â
The awardees were presented with their award plaques and benefits at an award presentation ceremony held in Abuja.
Organisers of the award, Nigeria Health Watch, noted that the awardees’ evidence-based and accurate reporting of epidemic preparedness in Nigeria were selected for having an impact on epidemic prevention in the country.Â
Speaking during the awards ceremony, Programme Manager, Nigeria Health Watch, Beti Baye, said Prevent Epidemics Naija project started in 2018 with two objectives: to build public awareness for epidemic preparedness and to advocate for more funding for epidemic preparedness both at the Federal and State level.
Head of Prevention Programmes & Knowledge Management Department at the Nigeria Centre for Diseases Centre (NCDC), Dr Chinwe Ochu said: “COVID-19 pandemic has brought both economic and social disruptions in the society. It is good we appreciate those that have worked to protect the lives of Nigerians and to stop the virus from spreading.
“The pandemic has shown the key role the media has to play. The public seems to trust the media than health agencies. We expect the media to source right information from respective health authorities.
“A single misinformation from media that goes viral can cause havoc in the society even more than COVID-19. We should fact check every information before we put it out.”
Nwafor’s report examines how years of underfunding the Nigerian health system has affected the nation’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Utaka produced and presented a radio programme on readiness of Nigeria’s health system for health emergencies such as COVID-19.
Felix’s report focused on COVID-19 lockdown: Inside a Lagos emergency food market while Azodoh’s blog post focused on how to prevent future pandemics.
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