ILO Safe Migration Journalism Competition

The International Labour Organization wants journalists and storytellers in the East and Horn of Africa to tell the stories behind labour migration. Run through the ILO's Better Regional Migration Management (BRMM) Programme, funded by the UK's FCDO, it accepts articles, audio, photo stories, video and animation, and flies the overall winner to Zanzibar.

What you get:

• First place: an invitation to the Fifth Labour Migration Advisory Group meeting in Zanzibar, Tanzania, 16 to 18 December 2026, with travel, accommodation, daily subsistence allowance (DSA) and visa costs covered by the ILO
• First place: a place on the youth, media and research panel alongside a migrant worker
• Second place: a plaque and publication of the work on ILO and regional channels
• Third place: a certificate and publication of the work on ILO channels
• You keep the copyright to your work

What you'll do:

• Produce an original piece on the theme Safe and regular labour migration: the stories behind the journey
• Choose a format: an 800 to 1,500 word story or audio up to 8 minutes, a photo story of one to five images, a video of 8 to 10 minutes, or an animation of 3 to 5 minutes
• Email the entry or a link, a description of up to 150 words and an entry form to the ILO with the subject line Media Award, Country

Key dates:

• Call opens 3 November 2026
• Entries close 25 November 2026, 23:59 East Africa Time
• Judging 26 to 27 November 2026
• Winners notified 30 November 2026
• Fifth Labour Migration Advisory Group meeting in Zanzibar, Tanzania, 16 to 18 December 2026; awards on 18 December

More information:

• Full guidelines: the ILO's Journalism and Storytelling Competition PDF, linked from the news release
• Questions to Yonas Berhane at zewdiey@ilo.org before the closing date

• Based in Djibouti, Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia, South Sudan, Tanzania or Uganda
• Aged 18 or over on the closing date
• Individual or team entries; a team names one lead contact and only one member travels if it wins
• Up to two entries per person or team
• Work produced or first published between 1 January 2026 and the closing date; previous competition winners cannot be resubmitted
• English, or French with an English summary or subtitles
• AI-generated work is disqualified; basic editing tools are fine
• Do not identify trafficking survivors, children or people at risk without written, informed consent
• To take up first place you need a valid passport and must be able to travel
• ILO staff, consultants, their immediate family and judges cannot enter