Cartoonist Paul Kalemba was awarded GE Energy & Infrastructure Award at this year’s CNN Multichoice African Journalist 2015 Awards for his ingenuity in figuring out a solution to Nairobi’s traffic jam through a graphic.
Mr Kalemba, who works freelance for The Standard on Saturday, won for his piece “Sorting out Nairobi Transport” which was chosen from entries spanning 39 nations across the African continent.
“It is the first time we have awarded a piece of graphic journalism. Infrastructure is an important topic but it is very a difficult story to make interesting and Paul Kelemba has succeeded. He used a full-page graphic in the Saturday edition of the Standard to paint a scenario of how Nairobi’s epic transport problems could be solved. Maddo, as Kalemba is known, included trams, subways, buses and pedestrianised areas to illustrate the various transport options facing one of Africa’s leading cities. The graphic is deeply humorous as he pokes gentle fun at his fellow Nairobians and the people who run the city. A popular winner, we hope that by showcasing graphic journalism, more young artists will turn their attention to using their craft for this exciting new form of journalism.” – Judges.
The Director of Communications for GE Africa Patricia Obozuwa said journalists play a vital role in setting the right policy agenda for governments. “Paul Kalemba’s award winning entry is a typical example of the power of journalism to redirect public focus on the topical issues,” she said. “We are glad to be associated with the Energy and Infrastructure category of the CNN Awards. By their respective entries in this category, journalists are certainly helping to highlight infrastructural issues that sometimes become a call-to-action for stakeholders and governments”.
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