A Nigerian anti-corruption youth group, the Creative Youth Initiative Against Corruption (CYIAC), has emerged the
winner of the Innovative Category of the first UN SDG Action Awards.
At the awards ceremony in Bonn, Germany, on Wednesday, Mr. Markus Hipp, the Director, BMW Foundation, presented the Innovative Category top award to Ms Foluke Michael, the Project Director of CYIAC.
The UN SDG Action Campaign that led to the award demonstrated the extraordinary momentum towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in different parts of the world.
The Awards Ceremony was held in tandem with the second edition of the Global Festival of Action for Sustainable Development in Bonn, and honored initiatives in the categories of communicator, connector, includer, innovator, mobilizer, storyteller, and visualizer.
“These are ‘Action’ Awards because we need more than words: our winners dared to believe and act for change. They are perfect examples of the wonderful work that’s happening around the world led by thousands, if not millions, of people”, said Mitchell Toomey, Global Director of the UN SDG Action Campaign.
The winning initiatives include fighting corruption in Nigeria,
mobilizing Belgians to implement the SDGs in their daily lives,
empowering children through photography and digital skills in
Bangladesh, promoting human rights education in Sri Lanka and much
more.
Evidencing the multi-sectoral engagement to achieve the SDGs, the
winners span over private and public sectors, as well as civil society
and grassroots movements.
Over 700 nominations from 125 countries in 7 continents were
submitted. An expert judging panel evaluated the submissions against
the degree to which actions were deemed to be transformative,
inclusive and impactful.
In addition, an open vote was held on the website of the UN SDG Action
Campaign, where visitors could rate their favourite among the 38
finalists to win the People’s Choice Award.
“Great solutions for the world’s challenges can come from anywhere. We
hope everyone is inspired by these stories and consider submitting
their nominations for future Awards. These are the first winners of a
community that will continue to grow,” said Toomey.
