JoyNews Bono East regional correspondent, Anass Sabit has been adjudged the winner of the TV Category for the 2024 Open Forum on Agricultural Biotechnology (OFAB) media awards in Ghana.

The award recognizes the efforts Anass Sabit played in educating and strengthening public awareness of the importance of agricultural biotechnology in achieving food security.

Anass Sabit, who has worked on several Agric-related stories and how farmers in the Bono East enclave are battling the destruction of their farms by pests felt motivated by the latest scientific work conducted by researchers at the Council for Scientific Research, a move he believes is a breakthrough for the hundreds of farmers who have been affected over the years.

The Open Forum on Agricultural Biotechnology (OFAB) media awards is part of an effort to promote excellence in science journalism and appreciate the contributions of journalists in promoting sustainable agricultural technologies.

OFAB operates in 10 countries, including Ghana, Kenya, Uganda, Mozambique, and Nigeria.

National Coordinator of OFAB, Dr Richard Ampadu-Ameyaw, acknowledged the role of the media as critical in helping bridge the gap between scientists, policymakers, and the public to promote informed decision-making and the adoption of technology.

On the release of the GM Cowpea, the first genetically modified crop in Ghana, Dr Ampadu-Ameyaw said the Pod Borer Resistant plant has received varietal approval for commercial production.

This, he noted, creates the right opportunity for journalists to use evidence-based reporting to bridge the knowledge gap and demystify public perception of biotechnology.

To the government, he called for more funds for research to help promote sustainable development.

General Secretary of the Ghana Journalists Association (GJA), Edmund Kofi Yeboah, made a case for journalists to be given grants to do in-depth stories to demystify misinformation about emerging scientific technologies that will promote food security amidst climate change and its effects on soils and seeds.

Two other journalists, Gertrude Ankah of Graphic Communications Group and Ernest Senanu Dovlo, a freelance journalist also received awards for print and radio categories.

Each awardee received a plaque, a tablet, a cheque of GH₵3,000, and a huge hamper of confectioneries.

The award winners representing; TV, print and radio categories will, in addition to their awards, travel to Malawi to participate in the continental awards, during which the overall winners will be announced.