The Ashanti regional chapter of the Ghana Journalists Association (GJA) has officially launched the Ashanti Media Excellence Awards in Kumasi.

The awards program is dedicated to celebrating regional journalistic excellence by recognizing deserving professionals across various media disciplines.

Addressing the journalists, GJA Ashanti Chairman, Kofi Adu Domfeh, reaffirmed the executive leadership's commitment to prioritizing the interests of regional journalists through transparent and accountable governance.

He noted that the strong media community built across the region possesses the collective strength to thrive independently, emphasizing that the awards program remains dedicated to honoring outstanding journalism.

“As executives, we remain committed to delivering on our mandate through transparency, accountability and collective responsibility,” he said.

He also emphasized the theme of this year’s edition: “Celebrating Excellence, Championing Credibility: Journalism in the Age of AI” is to promote professionalism in an era of misinformation and disinformation.

“Journalism is at a crossroads in this era of deepfakes, misinformation, disinformation and the rapid advancement of artificial intelligence. Our professionalism is what will make the difference. Critical verification, accuracy, fairness and balanced reporting must remain at the heart of what we do,” he added.

The launch gathered media professionals and stakeholders to introduce the newly appointed planning and vetting committees, unveil the official award categories, and outline updated nomination guidelines for this year's edition.

Chairperson for the Awards Committee, Isaac Justice Bediako, briefed attendees on the available award categories.

He elaborated on the modernized nomination format, stressing that all entry submissions must adhere strictly to the vetting committee's inspection criteria.

The categories for this year’s edition include sports, health, education, agriculture, arts and tourism, documentary, features, science, environment and climate change.

Chairperson for Female Media Practitioners, Eunice Attakorah Manu, encouraged journalists across the region to actively participate in upcoming association activities to foster a unified and resilient media ecosystem.

The night for the awards ceremony is scheduled to take place in the first week of October. For now, nominations have been opened by the committee for thorough evaluation, assessment and review by an experienced five-member jury.