Buziness Africa Gets Transport Award
At the 7th annual awards ceremony that took place in State Kremlin palace accompanied by a grand concert of both Russian and international pop stars, and festive banquette organized with support from Russian Ministry of Transport, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the State Duma in Moscow, Buziness Africa media became the first African organization to receive the 2011 Golden Chariot Prize.
The Golden Chariot Prize is awarded yearly for notable achievements to individuals, groups of individuals, ministries, enterprises and related organizations operating in the transport sphere. This year, the organizers awarded transport ministers and transport organizations from foreign countries as well as Russian transport enterprises and the media from different regions in the Russian Federation. Organizers said that the final list of the golden laureates was chosen from highly competitive nominations using criteria set by a committee of judges.
According to tradition, ceremony was opened by the honorable chairman of the presidium of reward, the deputy chairman of the State Duma RF, Valerie [Afonasevich] Yazev and the deputy chairman of the presidium of competition, secretary of state, the deputy minister of Transport RF, Sergey [Alekseyevich] Aristov.
The committee said that the decision to recognize Buziness Africa was to support its work for promoting the transport sector, and urged related ministries and departments in African countries to do the same. The organizing committee said that it would look for the best transport funtionaries, ministers and transport departments, from African countries to award next year.
Buziness Africa was created as part of a strategy to expand media operations to and focuses on Africa, Russia and other former Soviet republics, aims at facilitating the flow of economic information across the regions and further aims at serving as an effective networking instrument among foreign organizations, institutions, ministries, departments and businesses in these countries.
Since its creation, it has steadily moved with the economic change in the country. Buziness Africa has forged media partnership with Russian Chamber of Trade and Industry, Institute for
African Studies, National Coordinating Committee on Russian-African Economic Cooperation [AfroCom], African Alliance [AA] among others in Moscow. It also provides publicity campaign literature and brochures during business forum and exhibitions.
Buziness Africa was founded by Kester Kenn Klomegah, a Moscow based Ghanaian journalist. He writes on African issues inclusively for African Press Agency [APA] and Russia's domestic and international affairs for the Inter Press Service [IPS] and teaches at the Moscow Institute of Modern Journalism. Earlier, he had worked for the Moscow Times, a reputable English newspaper. He continues to contribute analytical articles on Russia's foreign policy in Africa for many African magazines in Europe.
He is refered to as "a giant of African journalism in Russia" who widely-shared opinions on Russian-African policy issues. In 2005 and 2009, he was awarded the "Golden Word Prize" by Media Soyuz [a non-profit media organization that tracts excellence in foreign journalists' work in Russia] for his systematic large volume of articles highlighting Russia's economic cooperation [economic diplomacy] with African countries. He has received certificates of commendation for his meritorous indepth media work.
"As already known, the transport sector is a pillar of an economy. Transport network connects rural and urban markets, goods have to reach where they are mostly needed and that is why developing this sector is very important," Klomegah said delightedly after the award ceremony, and thanked the awards committee and the jury for the selection.
"The new era requires constant use of the media as an instrument for popularizing development goals and achievements, and to inform the public systematically about development challenges and problems in the society. By this way, we help deepen mutual understanding of all issues affecting people and society as well as relations between countries, and this is our legitimate responsibility which we'll continue to play as media practitioners," Klomegah added.
He has urged individuals and business organizations for all kinds of support for the Buziness Africa media in order to realize its primary potential goals.
Speaking at the ceremony, Dr. Zenebe Tadesse Kinfu, Publisher of Buziness Africa and an Associate Professor at the Mass Communications and International Journalism Faculty of
Russian University of Peoples Friendship [RUDN] expressed profound gratitude to the organizers for the award and thanked the committee for nominating and finally awarding its highest transport prize for the media's meritous performance.
He further explained that Buziness Africa was created by single-minded awarding wining professional from the Republic of Ghana to fill the information gap and to help Russian business community with vital economic information. He hinted that other innovative projects are in the pipeline which have been financially constrained for their immediate take off from the ground.
"We'll try to provide the best information services [already our business newsletters have been circulating regularly] and we'll also provide an interactive business platform in form of seminars and conferences where both Russian and African business people can exchange ideas and get connected with potential investment possibilities," Dr Zenebe said assertively, and added that the ex-Soviet region is so vast with untapped economic resources.
Many Africans reacted to the award with great appreciation and further have acknowledged the role of the media in helping sectors to develop in an economy.
Remarks by all the high-ranking guests offered motivation and preparedness to provide new opportunities and to strengthen international economic relationships with the foreign transport sectors, companies, associations and enterprises to attain competitive capacity in Russia and in the world market. Some of the foreign award recipients came from Australia, Azerbaijan, Dubai, Germany, Israel, Lithuania, Poland, Spain and Turkey. Source:Buziness Africa magazine.
This article was originally posted on Sustainable Development Africa Platform
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