At a function held to mark the sixth annual Siemens Profile Awards at the Blue Valley Golf and Country Estate in Midrand on 27 February 2007, Jennifer Stastny of Popular Mechanics was named as the Overall Profile Award winner for 2006 with her piece 'Unseen Ally', which also won a profile award in the medical solutions category.
With the aim of rewarding reporting excellence in the fields of science and technology in Africa, Sigi Proebstl, chief executive officer of Siemens Southern Africa, says the marked increase in the number of entrants from across the continent has made the Profile Awards truly Pan-African in their scope and reach. "It is our firm belief that science and technology reporting needs to be continuously accelerated and improved on the continent in order to demystify these very important topics that have the potential to impact massively on the lives of all Africa's people," says Proebstl. "The recognition and reward of those writers, broadcasters and producers who effectively do this, therefore, is a vitally important task."
Supporting this view, Kerry Swift, executive director: development at Rhodes University and the convener of the judging panel, composed of senior journalists from English, French and Arabic media, technology writers, academics and technologists, said that overall, the trend was up in terms of the number of entries received, countries participating and in the depth of knowledge displayed. "Of particular importance this year was the quality and quantity of entries from the north of Africa, indicating a wide spread from countries across the continent such as Nigeria, Egypt and Burkina Faso, as well as from Francophone Africa," said Swift. "Of the winning entries, what stood out clearly was the depth of research, the ability to unbundle complex technology, individual writing styles and a broad interest in the technology arena, with several entries considered to be world-class. The category and merit awards went to those journalists who unbundled technology so audiences could easily grasp the nature and benefits of new technologies, and who did so in a clear and concise manner."
Proebstl said that as developments in science and technology continue apace, it is essential to stay up-to-date with the leading edge of innovation, which is why Siemens sees the reporting of science and technology in an easily understandable format as a priority for Africa. "We believe that science and innovation can help us create a safer and healthier society, a cleaner environment and a prosperous knowledge-driven economy for the entire continent's people," he concluded.
Category winners
Research and development
* Alan Duggan, Popular Mechanics (SA)
'Going ballistic'.
Communications (Carriers & Enterprise)
* Ramata Soré, L'Evement (Burkina Faso)
'The eye of the parents: better than a school report'.
Energy
* Adel El Bahnasawi, Al Masry Al Youm (Egypt)
'Egyptian government's nightmare of a single bidder in electricity sector'.
Business solutions (IT)
* Haitham Dardeeri, El Mal (Egypt)
'Preparations to start TV broadcast over the Internet'.
Transport
* Samir Mahmoud, Al Ahram (Egypt)
'Road rage and hundreds of victims'.
Policy and investment
* Duncan McLeod, Financial Mail (SA)
'Mashile's mess'.
Corporate responsibility
* Rowan Watt-Pringle, FOCUS on Transport and Logistics (SA)
'Blasting the heart out of crime'.
Industry solutions (Basic)
* Adetokunbo Abiola, Weekend Hope (Nigeria)
'Building machines on shoestring budget'.
Medical solutions
* Jennifer Stastny, Popular Mechanics (SA)
'Unseen ally'.
Merit awards
Communications (carriers and enterprise)
* Elvis Eromosele, Financial Standard (Nigeria)
'What hopes for cyber cafes?'
Communications (Carriers and enterprise)
* Samir Mahmoud, Itesalat El Mostakbal (Egypt)
'An archive in a capsule'.
Energy
* Terry FitzPatrick, Public Radio International 'Living Earth' (SA)
'Pebble Bed Technology: Nuclear Promise or Peril'.
* Ashraf Fekry, El Mal (Egypt)
'Gas subsidies fuel industrial profits'.
* Irma Venter, Mining Weekly (SA)
'Coal crunch or sun power'.
* Helene le Roux
Engineering News (SA)
'Energy harvest or hype vs. reality'.
Business solutions (IT)
* Oluwaseun Temitope Igbalode, IT & Telecom Digest (Nigeria)
'Much ado about remote trading'.
* Abeer Saady, Community Times (Egypt)
'Offshore outsourcing: a goldmine for Egyptian industry'.
Transport
* Kheir Ragheb Kheir, Al Masry Al Youm (Egypt)
'No covering for Mahmud Ismail'.
Policy and investment
*Haitham Dardeeri, El Mal (Egypt)
'Contact centres hold the key to investment attraction'.
* Antonio Ruffini, WattNow (SA)
'SKA - There can only be one'
* Atef Abdel Sattar, Itesalat Al Mostaqbal (Egypt)
'Electronic sports seeking a legitimate father'
Medical solutions
* Gillian Warren-Brown, Popular Mechanics (SA)
'Ti-bone'.
* Anthony Doman, Popular Mechanics (SA)
'High Anxiety'.
For more information contact Keshin Govender, Siemens Southern Africa, +27 (0)11 652 2412, keshin.govender@siemens.com, www.siemens.co.za
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