Diageo Africa Business Reporting Awards 2013 Winners Announced

Diageo, the world's leading premium drinks company, has announced the winners of the 2013 Diageo Africa Business Reporting Awards at a gala ceremony, which took place in London yesterday.

The Awards, which are celebrating their tenth anniversary in 2013, showcase the journalists and media outlets who have delivered excellent business journalism from and about Africa.

Winners from the ten categories came mainly from the UK and West Africa. Matthew Davies, a BBC correspondent, was named Journalist of the Year while the Best Newcomer title was awarded to Sherelle Jacobs, a journalist for African Business magazine. The award for Media of the Year also went to African Business.

Paul Walsh, Adviser to the Chairman and Chief Executive, Diageo plc, and chair of the judging panel said, "In the first year of the Awards I recall we had just 35 entries, predominantly from UK-based media organisations. Ten years later, we regularly receive over 1000 entries from right across the world, including a significant proportion from within Africa. This, I believe, clearly demonstrates that the interest in Africa and its opportunities are becoming more and more mainstream.  In the last decade we have seen great improvements in reporting on Africa and this has delivered clear benefits to business and the region, and I hope to see this continue well into the future.”

The 2013 winners of the Diageo Africa Business Reporting Awards are:

BEST INFORMATION & COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY (ICT) FEATURE
Africa’s healthcare technology revolution Fiona Graham (BBC, UK)

BEST FINANCE FEATURE
Private Equity in Africa Ola Omoyele, Tunde Akodu and Olu Omoyele (ACM Insight, Nigeria)

BEST INFRASTRUCTURE FEATURE
Africa’s Infrastructure Boom: Will this time be different? Adam Green (This is Africa, UK)

BEST AGRIBUSINESS / ENVIRONMENT FEATURE
The E-Waste Menace in Ghana Thomas Naadi Bitegma (ETV Ghana, Ghana)

BEST TOURISM FEATURE
Revisiting Tinapa Anthony Akaeze (Broad Street Journal, Nigeria)

BEST BUSINESS NEWS STORY
Guinea reignites $2.5bn mining tussle Tom Burgis, Helen Thomas and Misha Glenny (The Financial Times, UK)

BEST BUSINESS FEATURE
Africa Calling William Wallis (The Financial Times, UK)

BEST NEWCOMER
Sherelle Jacobs (African Business, UK)

MEDIA OF THE YEAR
African Business (UK)

JOURNALIST OF THE YEAR
Matthew Davies (BBC, UK)