Awards
Two AFP photographers among the World Press Photo 2022 regional winners
The World Press Photo Foundation has announced the regional winners of the 65th World Press Photo contest. This new regional format brings together a regional and global panel of judges to select winners from each region in four categories: Single Images, Stories, Long-Term Projects, and Open Format. The regional winners then compete for the global winner award for each category. The global winners of the 2022 competition will be announced on April 7.
AFP has won twice in Africa.
Sodiq Adelakun Adekola, a stringer for AFP, won the "Stories" category for his story in Nigeria entitled "Afraid to go to school”.
He followed the repercussions of the kidnappings of students by Islamist and armed groups on the country's schools.
These groups kidnap students to oppose Western secularism, to make quick money through ransom, and to negotiate the release of Boko Haram members. In 2014, the #BringBackOurGirls campaign led to international protests and broader discussions on the issue. Today, the kidnappings continue and even expanded to boys, yet the issue has largely fallen from international media attention.
In Ethiopia, AFP stringer Amanuel Sileshi received an honorable mention for his photo series "Searching for peace in the midst of chaos”. He documented the impact of the conflict in Tigray on the lives of the people of Amhara.
Since November 2020, Ethiopia has been in the midst of a violent internal conflict involving government forces and the Tigray People's Liberation Front. Casualties have been high on both sides and tens of thousands of civilians have been affected. The fighting has spread from the northernmost region of Tigray to the neighboring states of Amhara and Afar, resulting in internal displacements and famine.
Click here to see all the winners