Winners of the latest Road Safety Reporting Competition and Awards drew attention to the threats faced by motorcyclists in Nigeria, poor highway design in Nepal, and the human toll of poor road safety globally, especially in low- and middle-income countries, where nine in 10 of all road deaths occur.
A panel of judges selected a winner and two runners-up from each of five countries with high road death rates: Brazil, India, Mexico, Nepal and Nigeria. The competition, in its third year, aimed to raise awareness and reporting standards around critical yet under-reported road safety issues. It is implemented through ICFJ, with support from the FIA Foundation’s Richard Stanley Memorial Grant and the World Health Organization (WHO).
Around 1.2 million people are killed in road traffic crashes every year, and road crashes are the leading killer of children and young people aged 5-29 globally, WHO data shows. Journalism has a crucial role to play in calling for policies and actions that save lives, holding leaders to account, and showcasing solutions to the complex challenge of ensuring safe mobility for everyone.
The 2024 competition winners were Jose Pedro Soares Martins from Brazil, Dipak Dash from India, Martha Guillén from Mexico, Dhanu Bishwakarma from Nepal and Umar Hussaini from Nigeria. Highly commended stories came from: Tacita Azevedo and Thiago Silva of Brazil; Parikshit Nirbhay and Suchak Patel of India; Denise Aribela Ahumada Chapa and Viviana Martinez; of Mexico; Durga Rana Magar and Raju Jhallu Prasad of Nepal; and Justina Ashishana and Amarachi Okeh of Nigeria.
The first-place winners will receive a prize of $1,000 and the runners-up $500 each. The project also included journalist training in three languages to support data-led investigation and critical examination of road crash causes and challenges.
“Road safety is something that affects all of us,” said Aliza Appelbaum, ICFJ’s vice president of programs. “Thank you to our winners, and other journalists like them, for rigorously reporting on this topic. It’s a public service that can quite literally save lives.”
“Road deaths are preventable. People will always make mistakes on the roads, but we can ensure our transport systems absorb errors in a way that significantly reduces deaths. Journalists have a crucial role to play in calling for policies and actions that save lives, so we must help them dig-deeper into the facts and what works in reducing road deaths,” said Dr. Nhan Tran, head of safety and mobility at WHO.
FIA Foundation Executive Director Saul Billingsley said: “The FIA Foundation is proud to support this competition through a grant in memory of legendary filmmaker Richard Stanley, whose work brought the reality of road traffic injury into the global agenda. This important project continues his legacy by training and recognizing journalists as they address the human stories and systematic injustices playing out on roads across the globe every single day.”
Brazil
Winner - Jose Pedro Soares Martins
Soares Martins provides a strong and comprehensive overview of Brazil’s progress in reducing road deaths and boosting road safety in light of the UN’s global targets. His reporting highlights often neglected issues, such as road infrastructure, speed management and vehicle safety.
Runner-up - Tacita Azevedo
Azevedo shares two powerful stories of lives forever changed by speeding vehicles and examines efforts to strengthen law enforcement and drunk driving.
Runner-up - Thiago Silva
Silva’s video report highlights the dangers from a lack of pedestrian priority at crossings and vehicles speeding, through an empathy exercise, and connects to a sensitive story of a crash survivor.
India
Winner - Dipak Dash
Through skillful storytelling, compelling data and a range of authoritative voices, Dash sets out the scale of India’s road safety challenge, including the changing trends in mobility.
Runner up: Parikshit Nirbhay
Nirbhay provides strong analysis of the patterns of road crashes in India, with gripping medical, academic and civil society voices. He included excellent calls to action, including to address high speeds.
Patel puts a strong focus on the most vulnerable road users, such as pedestrians and motorcyclists, and the systematic issues which create the most dangerous road conditions.
Mexico
Winner - Martha Guillén
Guillén Rosales’ report stands out for its rigorous investigative work in exposing the dangerous transport conditions that agricultural workers face in Jalisco. The determination to uncover the truth and advocate for worker safety make this an example of journalistic integrity.
Runner-up - Denise Aribela Ahumada Chapa
Ahumada Chapa’s report skillfully ties the rising risk of road injury faced by cyclists in Ciudad Juarez to shortcomings in urban planning, inadequate infrastructure and lack of law enforcement. It calls for urgent and comprehensive efforts to protect cyclists.
Runner-up - Viviana Martinez
Martinez provides a thorough analysis of the urban planning challenges in Ciudad Juarez, specifically the lack of transparency on a municipal road expansion project and what it means for pedestrian safety.
Nepal
Winner: Dhanu Bishwakarma
This insightful article highlights how road investment without safety investment fails everybody, founded on strong data analysis.
Runner-up - Durga Rana Magar
Magar provides a strong and in-depth investigation into the impact of poor highway designs and spotlights the devastating emotional impact of violent road crashes on a small community.
Runner-up - Raju Jhallu Prasad
Prasad’s impactful storytelling draws on an individual road crash to frame the issue as a global challenge. It challenges the narrative of road ‘accidents’ and reframes them as systematic and preventable design failures.
Nigeria
Winner - Umar Hussaini
A shocking, tragic fuel tanker explosion in northern Nigeria shines a light on Nigeria’s 'systemic failings' in road safety. This hard-hitting story spotlights an urgent need for systemic action.
Runner-up - Justina Ashishana
Ashishana documents the serious dangers faced by motorcyclists in Nigeria’s Niger State, as well as the crippling debts faced by injured riders and the need for safe, affordable helmets.
Runner-up - Amarachi Okeh
The huge risks faced by dispatch motorcycle riders in Lagos are compounded by employers that pay for insurance for their motorcycles but not medical insurance for their delivery drivers.
About ICFJ
The International Center for Journalists (ICFJ) enables a global network of journalists to provide trustworthy news essential to free and strong societies – vital work that strengthens democratic ideals and spurs change. We serve more than 177,000 journalists around the world, helping them cover the most critical issues of today, innovate to deeply connect with communities, and build news organizations that thrive. Learn more at icfj.org.
For media inquiries contact:
Erin Stock, Deputy Vice President of Communications, ICFJ
Email estock@icfj.org
About the World Health Organization
Dedicated to the well-being of all people and guided by science, the World Health Organization leads and champions global efforts to give everyone, everywhere an equal chance to live a healthy life.
For media inquiries contact:
Tel: +41 22 791 2222
Email: mediainquiries@who.int
About the FIA Foundation
The FIA Foundation is an independent UK registered charity which supports an international program of activities promoting safe roads, clean air, and climate action. The FIA Foundation Richard Stanley Memorial Grant aims to facilitate and strengthen reporting and storytelling through multimedia, podcasts, photo reportage, cross-border stories, and investigations to help audiences access information from a range of different perspectives around road safety. Learn more at www.fiafoundation.org.
For media inquiries contact:
Kate Turner, Media and Advocacy Manager, FIA Foundation
Tel +44 (0)7879 893 222
Email k.turner@fiafoundation.org