Sanlam Group Awards for Excellence in Financial Journalism (Africa)

The awards are a keenly contested top prize in the financial journalism landscape in Africa.

Award Categories

The category awards cover the following themes:

• Business and companies
  • This category should cover reporting on companies (listed or private), their performance, leadership, management issues as well as corporate governance.
  • Reporting on business trends and topical issues of the day is included in this category.
  • Print, online, radio, and TV media are eligible.
  • Criteria
    • News value
    • Impact
    • Rigour in reporting
    • Analytical value
    • Originality
    • Integrity
    • Specialist knowledge
    • Writing quality
    • Audio/TV production value and visual impact (where applicable)
• Economy
  • This category should cover reporting on the economy, political economy and the impact of government policy, international policy and events that influence the economy domestically or regionally.
  • Reporting on economic and political economic trends and issues are included in this category.
  • Print, online, radio, and TV media are eligible.
  • Criteria
    • News value
    • Impact
    • Rigour in reporting
    • Analytical value
    • Originality
    • Integrity
    • Specialist knowledge
    • Writing quality
    • Audio/TV production value and visual impact
• Financial markets
  • This category should cover reporting on financial markets, such as equity and fixed income markets, commodities, and money markets.
  • Includes reporting on capital markets, merger and acquisitions, and corporate finance.
  • Print, online, radio, and TV media are eligible.
  • Criteria
    • News value
    • Impact
    • Rigour in reporting
    • Analytical value
    • Originality
    • Integrity
    • Specialist knowledge
    • Writing quality
    • Audio/TV production value and visual impact (where applicable)
• Consumer financial education
  • This category should cover reporting that displays a meaningful commitment to educating ordinary Africans on personal finance. Topics covered can include savings, investments, debt, retirement, financial planning, budgeting, and health insurance. The entries should succeed presenting complex information in an easy-to-follow and engaging way for the consumer audience.
  • Ultimately, the work submitted should contribute to the betterment of the lives of South Africans by improving their understanding of money management and financial planning abilities.
  • Print, online, radio, and TV media are eligible.
  • Criteria
    • News value
    • Impact
    • Educational/informative
    • Simplification of complex information for ease of reading/viewing/listening and understanding
    • Rigour in reporting
    • Analytical value
    • Originality
    • Integrity
    • Specialist knowledge
    • Writing quality
    • Audio/TV production value and visual impact (where applicable)
• The African Growth Story
  • This category should cover reporting that specifically covers the economic progress of Africa, highlighting the economic activity of the continent and its challenges and path to sustainable growth.
  • Stories should focus on the growth of the continent in terms of investments, infrastructural development, economic progress, and related topics
  • Stories may focus on a particular country or region but should also reflect a continental perspective.
  • Print, online, radio, and TV media are eligible.
  • Criteria
    • News value
    • Impact
    • Rigour in reporting
    • Analytical value
    • Originality
    • Integrity
    • Specialist knowledge
    • Audio/TV production value and visual Impact (where applicable)
    • Stories may focus on a particular country or region but should reflect a continental perspective.
• Broadcast: Audio
  • This category should cover reporting through traditional radio or online audio and platforms on themes covering:
    • Business and companies
    • Economy
    • Financial markets
    • Consumer financial education
    • The African Growth Story
  • Only radio media are eligible.
  • Criteria
    • News value
    • Impact
    • Rigour in reporting
    • Analytical value
    • Originality
    • Integrity
    • Specialist knowledge
    • Scripting quality
    • Production value
    • Audio creativity
• Broadcast: Television/Video
  • This category should cover reporting through the traditional television or video in other new media platforms:
    • Business and companies
    • Economy
    • Financial markets
    • Consumer financial education
    • The African Growth Story
  • Only TV media are eligible.
  • Criteria
    • News value
    • Impact
    • Rigour in reporting
    • Analytical value
    • Originality
    • Integrity
    • Specialist knowledge
    • Scripting quality
    • Production value
    • Visual impact
• Business and the Environment
  • This category should cover reporting on topics that cover how business is engaging with the environment both in-country and internationally.
  • Reporting should critically cover and explain in-country and/or wider African responses to environmental change, responses to climate issues, sustainability of physical environments in both urban and rural context.
  • The best reporting and journalism will build awareness and understanding of the responsibilities and engagements of business with broad environmental matters.
  • Further, the reporting should help to hold accountable those implementing policy and applying funds to activities and projects.
  • Print, online, radio, and TV media are eligible.
  • Criteria
    • News value
    • Impact
    • Rigour in reporting
    • Clarity and analytical value
    • Originality
    • Integrity
    • Specialist knowledge
    • Writing quality
    • Audio/TV Production value
    • Visual impact (where applicable)
• Business and Society
  • This category requires reporting that goes beyond recording charitable or social investment activities.
  • Reporting in this category will cover topics that examine how business responds to the interests and concerns of a range of relevant stakeholders.
  • The best reporting and journalism will develop understanding of the issues, demonstrate innovating in determining impact, and encourage accountability regarding how business interacts with society.
  • Criteria
    • News value
    • Impact
    • Rigour in reporting
    • Clarity and analytical value
    • Originality
    • Integrity
    • Specialist knowledge
    • Writing quality
    • Audio/TV Production value
    • Visual impact (where applicable)

Prize Information

• The top awards consist of:
  • Best Newcomer
  • Lifetime Achievement
  • Financial Journalist of the Year
• The winner of each category receives R 30 000 prize money.
• The Best Newcomer winner receives R 25 000.
• The overall winner – Financial Journalist of the Year – receives R 40 000. All winners receive a certificate of recognition.

Eligibility Criteria

• The competition is open to all African journalists in print, online, radio and TV media who are based in Africa, working in an African news organisation, and publish or broadcast their journalistic work on the continent.
• Winners of the top awards – Best Newcomer, Lifetime Achievement, and Sanlam Group Financial Journalist of the Year – must be contestants who have entered the competition. The independent judging panel will select the winners accordingly.
• One entry per category.
• An entry must consist of only three articles or audio or video recordings published or broadcast between 1 January and 31 December 2023.
• Entries will not be returned.
• Broadcast: Audio
  • An entry must consist of only three audio recordings and corresponding transcripts broadcast between 1 January and 31 December 2023.
• Broadcast: Television/Video
  • An entry must con sist of only three video recordings and corresponding transcripts broadcast between 1 January and 31 December 2023.
• Business and Society
  • An entry must consist of only three articles or recordings published or broadcast between 1 January and 31 December 2023.

Criteria

• The awards are judged according to the criteria outlined below.
  • Balance or fairness: Stories must strive for balance and present all sides of a story. On fairness, the story should strive for accuracy and truth in reporting, and not slant in any way.
  • Insight, analysis, or examination of the context of the story. This includes references to the journalist having probed the questions “why” and “how” behind a story.
  • Originality includes originality of an idea and/or its importance, originality of subject, originality of execution, initiative, surprising angle, interesting subject matter.
  • Relevance and public impact or benefit of the story, includes relevance to community, public service impact, effect on society, challenges and shows value/utility for the reader/listener/viewer.
  • Reporting rigour includes references to information gathering, depth of research or number of sources, thoroughness of reporting, new information and factual detail.
  • Writing and/or storytelling techniques includes writing/broadcasting quality, engagement and emotional impact, vivid presentation, compelling/captured attention, structure/architecture, creativity, style or flair, voice, and narrative technique.

For more information, visit Sanlam.