The Ghana Journalists Association (GJA) has launched its 30th Media Awards and constituted a nine-member committee to supervise, review entries and select winners.
The awards ceremony will take place on Saturday, November 7, 2026, in Accra.
The committee will be chaired by Kobby Asmah, a Commissioner of the National Media Commission and former Editor of the Daily Graphic. Other members named include the Editor in charge of Special Assignments at Multimedia Group, A.C. Ohene; Editor at Citi FM/ChannelOne TV, Richard Mensah; former DMD of Atinka Media, Kingsley Nsiah-Poku; former Senior Editor at the Ghana News Agency, Christian Akorlie and the Custodian Newspaper Managing Editor, Awudu Mahama.
The rest are the Editor of the Spectator, Georgina Naa-Maku Quaittoo; former Central Regional Director of the GBC, Ellen Avorgbedor and Nana Kwasi Appiah, a representative of the Photojournalists Association.
Responsibility, entries record
Inaugurating the committee, the GJA President, Albert Dwumfour, said the responsibility placed on members required fairness, independence, transparency and professionalism.
"The committee will assess the entries and submit the final report for consideration and approval. I wish the committee wisdom, fairness and integrity as it undertakes this important responsibility," the GJA President said.
Among dignitaries expected to grace the award ceremony are President John Dramani Mahama, the Special Guest of Honour, Asantehene Otumfuo Osei Tutu II; the GJA Patron, Ga Mantse Nii Teiko Tsuru; the Chairperson for the event, the Speaker of Parliament, Alban Bagbin, and the Chief Justice, Paul Baffoe-Bonnie.
On entries for the 30th GJA Media Awards, he said the GJA had received 327 entries from 206 journalists.
According to the GJA President, the figure is one of the highest numbers of entries recorded in recent years.
He said the submissions cut across media platforms, with 125 entries from online, 100 from television, 46 from print, and 45 from radio.
"This strong response demonstrated the continued commitment of Ghanaian journalists to professional excellence and the recognition of outstanding journalism.
It also confirmed the relevance and credibility of the GJA Media Awards as a leading platform for celebrating excellence in Ghanaian journalism," he said.
The President also announced two new additions to this year's awards.
"There are two new additions to the awards this year.
The New Media Platform Award and the Governor's Economic and Financial Story of the Year Award," he said.
He explained that the New Media Platform Award is being introduced to promote professionalism, ethical conduct and excellence among bloggers and new media practitioners.
"As the media landscape continues to evolve, it is important that regarded platforms and new media participants are encouraged to uphold the same standards of accuracy, fairness, and responsibility expected of traditional media," he said.
The Governor's Economic and Financial Story of the Year Award, introduced by the current Governor of the Bank of Ghana, Dr Johnson Pandit Asiama, according to the GJA President, has also attracted significant interest, receiving over 10 entries despite being a new category.
Scrutiny
Speaking at the launch, the Chief of Staff, Julius Debrah, who was Guest of Honour, urged the nine-member awards committee to work with fairness, independence and clear standards.
"Let these awards recognise journalism that is accurate, courageous, original, innovative and useful to the public.
Let every young reporter, whether working in Accra or in a small community, know that excellent work can be seen and celebrated.
"Ghana will need a media that can move at the speed of technology without abandoning the discipline of truth.
A media free enough to question, fair enough to listen, courageous enough to expose wrongdoing and humble enough to correct itself," he stated.
He described the media as an indispensable estate in the country’s democratic governance, stressing that scrutiny of government is not disloyalty.
He said the story of journalism in Ghana is one of a profession that has helped defend democracy, exposed wrongdoing and given citizens a voice.
“The media are widely described as the fourth estate because a nation cannot govern itself well when power is exercised without scrutiny, and citizens are denied reliable information.
"Government cannot serve well if it hears only applause.
Reporting grounded in facts helps us identify what is not working, understand how policies are being experienced and correct course.
We may disagree on the headline or a conclusion, but disagreement is not hostility and scrutiny is not disloyalty," he stated.
He said the relationship between the government and the media rested on shared responsibilities, with public officials required to provide timely information, submit to legitimate questions and protect media freedom.
He also charged journalists to verify information, offer a fair hearing, separate facts from opinion and correct errors when they occur.
"In a race to be first, our national peace and a person's hard-earned reputation must never become collateral damage.
Technology has made this duty even more important," he said.
