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Phillipa Mukome-Chinhoi

Zimbabwean journalists bagged nine awards, out of the 100 African winners, at the international Merck Media Awards ceremony held in Dubai on Tuesday.

The awards covered a range of topics in health reporting and were held in collaboration with African First Ladies.

Zimbabwean First Lady and Merck Foundation ambassador Dr Auxillia Mnangagwa received special thanks for supporting health and philanthropic programmes.

Zimbabwean awards winners were: Phillipa Chinhoi, Muchaneta Chimuka , Glenda Takachicha (all of Zimpapers), Michael Gwarisa (Health Times), Catherine Murombedzi (freelance), Shingirirai Mutonho and Elizabeth Sitotombe (both of The Patriot), John Manzongo and a student from Harare Polytechnic School of Journalism, Adelaide Kuudzerema.

The winners were among over 90 other African journalists who were celebrated for their reporting skills in the health categories.

Merck Foundation, established in 2017, is the philanthropic arm of Merck, a major German pharmaceutical and health products company. The foundation aims to improve the health and well-being of people and advance their lives through science and technology.

Its efforts are primarily focused on improving access to quality and equitable healthcare solutions in under-served communities, building healthcare and scientific research capacity and empowering people in science, technology, engineering and mathematics with a special focus on women and youth.

Merck Foundation chief executive Senator Dr Rasha Kelej expressed her gratitude to the African media and urged the winners to continue reporting on sensitive social and cultural issues in their countries. “I am proud to recognise and appreciate our winners of the Merck Foundation Media Recognition Awards 2022, who played a critical role in sensitising our community on pertinent issues in Africa.

“I appreciate all the efforts put in by the African media fraternity, who became the voice of the voiceless to raise awareness about sensitive social and cultural issues such as female genital mutilation, teenage pregnancies and early child marriages.

“The main purpose of your job is to make a change. Don’t take your work lightly because people will learn from it. Either right or wrong, they will change according to that,” she said.

Dr Kelej, who also doubles as President of Merck Foundation First Ladies Initiative Committee, said award winners must be advocates in their fields as they automatically became Merck Foundation alumni.

“I encourage all the winners to be advocates of ‘Merck Foundation More Than a Mother’ and ‘Diabetes and Hypertension’ advocates to further raise awareness about infertility, eliminate the stigma around it and support girl education,”.

The Merck Foundation has been holding the awards ceremony yearly and this has built more champions of spreading news on health issues in Africa.