International Judging Panel Announced for 2009 Africa Business Reporting Awards

26 March 2009

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Diageo, the world's leading premium drinks business, today announced the panel of judges for the Africa Business Reporting Awards. These annual awards were launched in 2004, as a practical response to encourage more prolific reporting of economic opportunity in Africa and to celebrate excellence in business journalism.

2009 sees the return of several esteemed judges drawn from the media, business, government and development sectors, as well as welcoming one new addition. The 2009 panel consists of:

Shantayanan Devarajan is the Chief Economist of the World Bank’s Africa Division and maintains ‘Africa Can’, a widely read blog on topical issues relating to the socio economic development on the continent. He has recently lectured in business schools across the globe on stimulating the private sector in Africa.
Zeinab Badawi is an international news broadcaster and presenter on BBC World News Today, as well as a trustee of the BBC World Service Trust.
Baroness Shriti Vadera is the Minister for Business and Competitiveness in the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform. Formerly a Minister in the Department for International Development and a member of the HM Treasury's Council of Economic Advisers as well as a special advisor to Gordon Brown.
Stephen King is an Investments Director at The Omidyar Foundation. Prior to this position, he was former director of BBC World Service Trust and worked for more than 15 years with international development agencies in Asia, Africa and in North America.
Dr Alhaji Bamanga Tukur is the Chairman of the NEPAD Business Group. He is also chairman of BHI Holdings Limited and executive president of the African Business Roundtable.
Louis Michel is the European Commissioner for Development and Humanitarian Aid. Prior to taking up this post, he was a senior figure in the Belgian government where he held the positions of Minister for Foreign Affairs, Minister for Institutional Reform and Deputy Prime Minister.
Professor Wiseman Nkuhlu is the former CEO of New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD). He is currently chairman of Pan-African Capital Holdings (Pty) Ltd, and a director of Old Mutual PLC, Kagiso Trust Investment and Virgin Atlantic South Africa.

Speaking at the launch of the 2009 awards, two-time winner of the Royal Television Society's "Interviewer of the Year" award and former BBC's correspondent in Washington and Moscow, Tim Sebastian said: [insert quote from Tim].

The judging panel will be chaired by Diageo’s Chief Executive, Paul Walsh. The panel will select winners in six categories:

  • Best Published Feature

  • Best Radio Feature

  • Best Television Feature

  • Best Published Photograph

  • Media of the Year

  • Journalist of the Year

The winners will be announced at a gala ceremony on 2 July 2009 at the Sheraton Park Lane, Piccadilly, London.

Announcing this year’s panel, Mr. Walsh said, ‘I am very pleased to be chairing the judging panel for the 2009 awards. Once again, we will be looking for entries that demonstrate excellent research and insight, clear and balanced presentation, journalistic flair and objectivity. I am delighted to be joined by an esteemed group of individuals who know the territory so well – from a business and a media point of view.
Many sub-Saharan African countries have worked hard during the last five years to reform their investment climates and to woo investors. The global financial crisis is undermining some of these hard earned gains; however, we must continue to encourage investors to see the opportunity that Africa represents. Sub-Saharan Africa is brimming with potential and, as our recent study shows, this is an opportune time to be reporting on Africa’s possibilities and the media industry is flourishing.

Upon joining the 2009 panel, new judge, Shantayanan Devarajan said: [proposes quote] ‘A few months ago I asked the question “shouldn’t we be increasing our efforts to keep supporting and strengthening Africa’s media sector” (blog entry: The African Media and State Accountability). In the Africa Business Reporting Awards, I see a tangible response to this question. These awards focus on creating an enabling environment for economic development to succeed. Societies can only thrive if certain fundamental conditions prevail – among these reliable, factual and useful information for those investing on the continent. I’m deeply honoured to be joining this illustrious judging panel and look forward to seeing some of this year’s best examples of business reporting about Africa.’

ENDS-

For more information, visit www.africabusinessreportingawards.com

Or contact:
Audrey Mpunzwana, Awards Secretary, africapractice, 24-25 Scala Street, London W1T 2HP, UK
ampunzwana@africapractice.com, +44 (0) 20 7209 7508

Isabelle Thomas, Corporate Relations Manager, 8 Henrietta Place, London W1G 0NB 
isabelle.thomas@diageo.com, +44 (0) 20 7927 5967 

NOTES TO EDITORS

About Diageo
Diageo is the world's leading premium drinks business with an outstanding collection of beverage alcohol brands across spirits, wines, and beer categories. These brands include Johnnie Walker, Guinness, Smirnoff, J&B, Baileys, Cuervo, Tanqueray, Captain Morgan, Crown Royal, Beaulieu Vineyard and Sterling Vineyards wines.

Diageo is a global company, trading in more than 180 countries around the world. The company is listed on both the New York Stock Exchange (DEO) and the London Stock Exchange (DGE). For more information about Diageo, its people, brands, and performance, visit us at Diageo.com. For our global resource that promotes responsible drinking through the sharing of best practice tools, information and initiatives, visit DRINKiQ.com.

Celebrating life, every day, everywhere.

Diageo Africa
Diageo Africa is active, particularly in brewing, but also in distilling, in the majority of the sub-Saharan African countries. For Guinness, in particular, the connection with Africa is a long one; the first recorded exports of Guinness to Africa were to Sierra Leone in 1827. Now Guinness is brewed in over 20 countries throughout Africa and is exported to many others. The popularity of the brand is going from strength to strength in Africa - Nigeria is the second largest Guinness market in the world. Diageo brands are enjoyed in more than 40 African countries.

Diageo Africa region is responsible for nearly a third of Diageo's net sales of beer globally, and with over 4,500 employees accounts for around 15 per cent of Diageo's workforce worldwide.

Several of the larger Diageo companies in Africa are quoted on local stock exchanges. Guinness Nigeria, for example, has over 60,000 shareholders. All of these companies have active corporate social responsibility programmes, covering initiatives in water, health, education and other areas of value to the communities in which we operate.