Support Opportunities - Awards, Funding, and Training

From SOUL BEAT AFRICA - where communication and media are central to AFRICA's social and economic development

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This issue of The Soul Beat includes a selection of awards, funding and training opportunities that are featured on the Soul Beat Africa website.

For the full listings on the Soul Beat Africa website go to the Awards section, the Funding section and the Training section These sections are continually updated with new support opportunities relevant to communication for development in Africa.

If you have information about other contests, prizes, funding, internships, or training opportunities that address communication for development issues and strategies, please contact us. Send details and links to soulbeat@comminit.com
Many thanks!

AWARDS

1. AfriComNet Awards for Excellence in HIV and AIDS Communication in Africa 2009
The African Network for Strategic Communication in Health and Development (AfriComNet) is calling for nominations for its Awards for Excellence in HIV/AIDS Communication in Africa. The awards are divided into 5 categories and AfriComNet will give one award per category for outstanding initiatives, campaigns, productions, and tools that advance the field of strategic communication and can be evaluated, adapted, and applied elsewhere. The 5 awards will recognise the best mass media campaign, intervention, or production; folk media initiative; multi-channel communication; interpersonal/community-based communication; and HIV- or AIDS-related article, series, or column.
Deadline: March 20 2009

2. Special Award for Development Media - One World Media
Administered by One World Broadcasting Trust (OWBT), this Special Award for Development Media aims to recognise an outstanding media project or organisation working on the ground, in the developing world, which has made a real impact on the lives of those living and working near it. The winner will be flown to London to receive a trophy at the Awards ceremony on June 22 2009, with all expenses paid.
Deadline: February 27 2009

3. Samir Kassir Award for Freedom of the Press
Journalists from the Middle East and North Africa are invited to submit entries for the Samir Kassir Award for Freedom of the Press, which aims to promote media freedom and the rule of law in the region. The two award categories are for the best opinion article and the best investigative reporting article. Deadline: March 30 2009

4. World's Children's Prize for the Rights of the Child (WCPRC)
The World's Children's Prize for the Rights of the Child (WCPRC) is awarded to three individuals or organisations for outstanding contributions on behalf of the rights of the child. The election of finalists is structured as a worldwide educational and empowerment process for the rights of the child and democracy and gives the world’s children an opportunity to present the prizes that are awarded.
Deadline: March 1 2009

5. Stop TB Partnership/Lilly MDR-TB Partnership Journalism Award
This award will recognise outstanding reporting and commentary in print and on the web that increases the public's knowledge and understanding of tuberculosis (TB) and multidrug-resistant TB (MDR-TB) in countries affected by the disease. The two categories include articles published by journalists located in a low- or middle-income country and articles published by journalists located in a high-income country.
Deadline: April 30 2009

6. Prize for Women's Creativity in Rural Life Award
These prizes (US$1,000 each), awarded by the Women's World Summit Foundation (WWSF) - an international non-governmental organisation (NGO) working towards the empowerment of women and children - aim to honour creative and courageous women and women's groups around the world for their contributions to improving the quality of life in rural communities. The prizes are focused on drawing international attention to the laureates' contributions to sustainable development, household food security, and peace, thus generating more recognition and support for their projects.
Deadline: March 31 2009

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FUNDING

7. International Fellowships Program (IFP) West Africa
The International Fellowships Program (IFP) is a programme supported by the Ford Foundation and administered in West Africa by the Association of African Universities (AAU) in collaboration with Pathfinder International, Nigeria and West African Research Center (WARC) in Senegal. IFP provides fellowships for advanced study to individuals from Ghana, Nigeria and Senegal, who will use their education to further development in their own countries and to work for greater social and economic justice worldwide. IFP fellowships will be awarded to applicants from diverse backgrounds, including social groups and communities that lack systematic access to higher education.
Deadline: February 27 2009

8. African Women's Development Fund - Main Grants Program
The African Women's Development Fund (AWDF) funds local, national, sub-regional, and regional organisations in Africa working towards women’s empowerment. The AWDF is an institutional capacity-building and programme development fund, which aims to help build a culture of learning and partnership within the African women's movement. The AWDF funds work in 6 thematic areas: women's human rights, political participation, peace building, health and reproductive rights, economic empowerment, and HIV/AIDS.
Rolling deadline

9. MacArthur Foundation Grant for Population and Reproductive Health (Nigeria)
To promote the reproductive health and rights of young people, the MacArthur Foundation focuses its grant making on initiatives that implement the federal government's national sexuality education curriculum. Grants are also made for the development and bringing to scale of models for out-of-school youth, so that they can be replicated in other states and nationally. In Africa, the MacArthur Foundation focuses on the country of Nigeria.
Deadlines: February 1 2009, May 1 2009, August 1 2009, and November 1 2009

10. EASSI 2009 Young Women's Internship Programme
The Eastern African Sub-regional Support Initiative for the Advancement of Women (EASSI) was formed in 1996 as a mechanism to facilitate networking within the Eastern African sub-region (Burundi, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Rwanda, Somalia, Tanzania, and Uganda) to build on gains made following the Beijing 4th World Conference on Women. The EASSI young women’s internship aims to develop and enhance young women’s skills in leadership, gender, lobbying and advocacy, management, report writing and analysis, research and documentation, information management, resourceful database development, website maintenance, and resource centre management.
Deadline: February 13 2009

11. African Women's Development & Communication Network (FEMNET) Internship
The African Women's Development and Communication Network (FEMNET) is offering an internship as part of their capacity building programme. It is open to female students (both local and international) and to those who have just completed their studies and are looking for experience and mentorship in the area of African women's human rights, gender mainstreaming, African feminist movements, and communications.
Rolling deadline

12. The Knight International Journalism Fellowships
The Knight International Journalism Fellowships, a programme of the International Center for Journalists in Washington, D.C., United States, is designed to make tangible changes that improve the quality and free flow of news in the public interest around the world. Funded by the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, the year-long programme sends international media professionals to countries where there are opportunities to promote reliable, insightful journalism that holds officials accountable.
Rolling deadline

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TRAINING

13. International Executive Media and TV Workshops (March 16-19 2009) Nairobi, Kenya
According to the organisers, the Center for Development Communication (CDC), this workshop is an intensive hands on learning event designed to help spokespersons and media practitioners learn to better engage the media around particular issues and to increase public support and visibility for their organisation. It is intended for business leaders, senior managers, directors, spokespersons in governments, non-governmental organisations, private or voluntary organisations, and other civil society organisations.

14. Sustaining Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) in Schools and in Communities: Promoting Sustainable Approaches (June 08-19 2009) Nairobi, Kenya
Organised by Network for Sanitation (Netwas) International, this course is designed to help participants create more effective WASH programmes. The focus will be on creating conducive student learning environments, as well as planning and implementing improvements in schools and communities. The course also seeks to bring about new awareness of the complex interaction between behavioural and technological elements in schools and communities.

15. Conflict Management & Conflict Sensitive Programming In Development Work (June 22-26 2009) Nairobi, Kenya

Organised by Regional Capacity Building Partners (RECABIP), this 5-day workshop is designed to enhance participants’ skills and knowledge in conflict resolution and peace building, both in conflict and non-conflict settings. The objectives of the workshop include deepening participants’ understanding of conflict resolution and peace building concepts, tools, and practices.

16. Advances in Behaviour Change Communication for HIV & AIDS, TB and Malaria (July 20-31 2009) Nairobi, Kenya
This course, offered by the Centre for African Family Studies (CAFS), aims to equip programme managers working in Behaviour Change Communication (BCC) programmes with skills to design and implement effective behaviour change communication interventions for HIV/AIDS, TB, and malaria programmes.

17. Political Reporting (Aug 31-Sept 04 2009) Johannesburg, South Africa
Organised by the Institute for the Advancement of Journalism (IAJ), this course is designed to equip political journalists at mid-career level and above to meet the challenges of reporting around politics in South Africa.

18. Advocacy Skills Course (Oct 12-16 2009) Nairobi, Kenya
The purpose of this course, offered by the African Medical and Research Foundation (AMREF), is to empower participants with advocacy and lobbying skills in order to advocate better for health and health related issues. It is intended for senior and mid-level programme/projects managers, medical and health personnel, and government officers.

19. Civic Education for Political Empowerment 2009 (Nov 16-27 2009) Arusha, Tanzania
Organised by MS Training centre for Development Co-operation (MS-TCDC), this course is designed for practitioners in development organisations; local government leaders and officials; women and youth community leaders; opinion leaders; and functional adult education community facilitators. According to the organisers, by the end of the course, participants will be able to facilitate and manage civic education processes, develop training programmes, and organise activities that help members of the public know and assert their rights, appreciate their responsibilities, and adhere to their civic obligations.

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