By Hannatu Musa Mato

Africa Media Development Foundation (AMDF) congratulates Oladeinde Olawoyin, for his selection, alongside 11 others from African countries, to participate in the Climate Tracker’s Investigative Journalism Fellowship.

Three others are Nigerian journalists including two reporters of International Centre for Investigative Reporting (ICIR), Niyi Oyedeji and Amos Abba, as well as a former intern with The ICIR, Jennifer Ugwa.

Journalists from other African countries include, Charles Pensulo, Daniel Samson, Ahmed Saba, Diana Taremwa Karakire, Lungelo Ndhlovu, Allan Ngige and Robert Kibet.

Others are Charles Pensulo, Daniel Samson, Ahmed Saba, Diana Taremwa Karakire, Lungelo Ndhlovu, Allan Ngige and Robert Kibet.

Oladeinde, a thorough bred investigative reporter with Premium Times online paper, was among the three finalists in the 2019 AMDF Journalist of the Year Awards, held in Kaduna last December.

He is a multiple award-winning journalist who has been nominated for and won several awards and fellowships.

The Climate Tracker fellowship creates a supportive environment for its fellows to delve into reporting key energy issues in their countries, expand their journalism skills and experience, collaborate with other fellows from across Africa, and work with the organization to pitch their stories for international publication.

The media support organisation is a global platform committed to tracking the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNCCC) in countries across the world.

In a statement on its website the organisation says, through its fellowship programmes, it has supported young journalists around the world, “from Afghanistan to Zimbabwe, Costa Rica to Fiji.

“Most of our opportunities have gone to young people who can make an impact in their national media,” the organization said.

Awards and Nominations

In 2017, he was nominated in the journalism category of The Future Awards Africa, held in Lagos.

In 2018, he was a recipient of the West Africa Media Excellence Awards (WAMECA), held in Ghana; as well as the Nigerian Breweries Golden Pen Awards, held in Lagos.

In December 2018, alongside other young journalists across Africa, he was named “Global Goalkeeper” by the Gates Foundation at an elaborate ceremony in South Africa, in recognition of his reporting of the global goals.

Last October, he was among 12 finalists from around the world shortlisted for the 2019 Thomson Foundation Young Journalist Award. He also clinched the big prize as the 2019 Capital Market Reporter of the Year at the PwC Awards for Excellence in Financial Journalism.

Last year, he was among finalists selected from across Africa at the Sanlam Award for Excellence in Financial Journalism ceremony, held in South Africa.

Mr Oladeinde is a 2018 recipient of the prestigious Wole Soyinka Award for Investigative Reporting (WSAIR), a 2018 fellow of the Natural Resource Governance Institute (NRGI), as well as a 2019 fellow of the African Science Literacy Network (ASLN).