* The award goes to my country and MANA as a whole
* It is a great motivation and milestone to my life career
* I would also like to thank National newspaper and Times for always featuring my work
By Leonard Masauli, MANA
The Nation Publication’s pictorial coverage of the official launch of Mwami One-Stop Border Post at Mchinji-Chipata — which was graced by the President Lazarus Chakwera and his Zambian counterpart, Hakainde Hichilema — has won Malawi News Agency (MANA) photojournalist, Lisa Kadango Malango the Southern Africa Development Community (SADC) Media Award.
She emerged the runner-up in the photography category of the SADC Regional Competition Awards — announced at the 43rd Ordinary Summit of the SADC Heads of State and Government, which is currently underway in Luanda, Angola where President Chakwera is in attendance.
Mwami One-Stop Border Post, among others, was constructed to improve the efficiency of border operations and contribute towards improving economies of both Zambia and Malawi.
In an interview, Kadango-Malango said she was hounored and thankful for the award, saying it is a great motivation in as far as her career is concerned.
“The award goes to my country and MANA as a whole,” she said. “It is a great motivation and milestone to my life career. I would also like to thank National newspaper and Times for always featuring my work.”
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SADC national media coordinator for Malawi, Chikumbutso Mtumodzi, who is Director of Information, said the aim of the competition is to promote integration among SADC countries.
“We are proud because Malawi has emerged second in the photography category and this fits well with the vision of the President Chakwera of putting Malawi on the map. I encourage more journalists to participate in the competition,” Mtumodzi said.
The first prize winner in each category of photography, print, radio and television received US$2,500 and a certificate and runner-up received US$1,000 as well as a certificate.
Thomson Keobatswe of Botswana emerged first winner in the photo category of these SADC Media awards which were established in 1996 to recognise best media work in disseminating information on SADC to support the process of regional corporation and integration in the region.
Meanwhile, Angola President Joao Manuel Gonvalves Lourenco has taken over the SADC chairmanship from Felix Antoine Tshisekedi, President of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) which run from yesterday till today, August 17-18, under the theme: ‘Human and Financial Capital: The Key Drivers for Sustainable Industrialisation in the SADC Region”.
In his acceptance speech, President Lourenco said SADC has great potential to attain meaningful development through human and financial capital investment.
Lourenco observed that enhanced industrialisation and market integration programs are critical for the region’s wellbeing.
The outgoing SADC chairperson, Tshisekedi described the theme as key to the implementation of the SADC Industrialisation Strategy and Roadmap to help the region get away from dependence syndrome.
He said the region has potential to diversify its economies if it focuses on adding high value on its manufactured goods: “As proposed by the incoming chair, the theme will enable our region to continue to drive the industrialisation agenda forward by developing, mobilising and harnessing human and financial capital.
“As a united regional community of 16 member states, with a combined gross domestic product of around US$720 billion and a total population of over 360 million, 75 percent of whom are young people, we have a market with considerable potential for investment and economic development.”
He added that SADC oneness has led to relative enjoyment of stable peace and security despite recurrent threats to the security in the DRC and Mozambique where armed groups continue to cause untold suffering among civilians, particularly women and children.
“Despite some challenges, our region continues to do well as shown by the African Union Commission’s Multidimensional Regional Integration Index which gave SADC a high score for regional integration, particularly in terms of financial, infrastructural, trade and environmental integration,” he said.
He commended and encouraged SADC member state officials, including SADC Ambassadors and High Commissioners around the world, as well as the media to intensify their efforts to raise awareness of SADC’s roles, mandate and achievements.—Additional reporting from Luanda by Zenak Matekenya, MANA
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