Recipients of Third Google News Initiative Innovation Challenge Emerge 

Emma Okonji

Google has announced 34 recipients of the third Google News Initiative (GNI) Innovation Challenge drawn from Africa, Middle East, Israel and Turkey. 

The recipients, among them, 21 journalists and publishers from 10 countries in Africa, were selected for their diversity in promoting diversity, equality and inclusion in the journalism industry. The GNI Innovation Challenge is part of Google’s $300 million commitment to helping journalism thrive in the digital era and has seen news innovators step forward with many exciting initiatives demonstrating new thinking.

Head of Innovation, Google News Initiative, Ludovich Blecher, said: “This year, we sought to broaden our criteria to include digital innovation initiatives that promote goals like reader engagement, new reader income, subscriptions, disinformation among other things Following a thorough assessment, a round of interviews, and a final jury selection, 34 projects from 17 countries were chosen to receive $3.2 million in funding.”  

The recipients met all the five criteria requirements including impact on the news ecosystem, equity and inclusion,  inspiration, innovation, diversity, and feasibility. Some of the recipients include Kenya’s WANANCHI Reporting, Nigeria’s Dubawa, and South Africa’s Quote This Woman+.

WANANCHI Reporting provides features that allow both the unserved and underserved Kenyans from remote and excluded areas to tell their stories and highlight diversity in a manner that avoids misrepresentation by allowing them to contribute to the news ecosystem through their technology-driven interactive platform.