The Dag Hammarskjöld Scholarship Fund for Journalists

The board of directors of the Dag Hammarskjold Fund is delighted to announce the selection of four reporters for the 2009 fellowship.

This year we received more than 400 applications, almost three times as many as last year.   The board acknowledges how late we are in selecting this year's Fellows, and wish to apologize to all who applied.

Each year, the Dag Hammarskjold Fund selects four mid-career journalists from the developing world to come to New York for the opening of the U.N. General Assembly annual debate.  The program is organized by UN-based journalists who also raise funds to finance it.

After their 10 weeks here, the journalism Fellows are encouraged to take home their deeper understanding of international organizations and issues, and especially to share these new skills and insights with other reporters.

In the past, the Fund has selected one Fellow from each corner of the developing world: Africa, Asia and South America. But we chose, this year, to focus on applicants from Africa and Asia, who submitted the overwhelming number of applications. We will include Latin America and the Caribbean next year.

Please join us in congratulating the recipients of the 2009 Dag Hammarskjold fellowship.

 

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Imelda V. AbanoImelda V. Abano writes about poverty and policy for the Business Mirror, a daily newspaper in the Philippines.

A passionate proponent of public health and development, Miss Abano, 32, has written extensively about women's empowerment, global warming, agricultural innovation, democracy building and human rights abuses in the Philippines and around the world.

Ms.  Abano won the 2008 prize for excellence in reporting awarded by the U.N. Correspondents Association for a series of stories examining hunger and hatred in Haiti.

www.BusinessMirror.com.ph

 

Samuel Addo AgyemangSamuel Addo Agyemang comes to New York from Accra, Ghana,  where he is a well-known reporter and anchorman for the privately owned Metro TV.

Mr. Agyemang, 28, has interviewed much of Ghana's political elite, including presidents past and present, sitting members of parliament, and a variety of African leaders and thinkers.  His background in economics and interest in development have helped him to report in-depth and authoritative  articles.

www.metroworld.tv/home.htm

 

Ali El-BahnasawyAli El-Bahnasawy,  28, is already earning a reputation in Cairo for investigative reporting and public interest stories.   His work for sister magazines Egypt Today and Business Today reflect his curiosity about domestic politics, international affairs and government accountability.

He is also a passionate about reporting and writing, particularly as a tool to inform and educate Egypt's voters.

"The majority of of journalists in Egypt do what they see others doing, not what is supposed to be done," Mr. El-Bahnasawy writes, adding that he hopes to learn new skills and insights during his 10-week fellowship, and bring that knowledge home to share with other reporters.

www.EgyptToday.com

 

Mushtaq YusufzaiMushtaq Yusufzai, 33, covers the war on terror for The News International, one of Pakistan's largest newspapers.  He lives in Peshawar, and reports regularly from the tribal areas that border Afghanistan and Pakistan's vulnerable North West Frontier Province -- home to al-Qaeda operatives and tribal insurgents.

Mr. Yusufzai writes about U.S. drones and the deafening noise of Hellfire missiles that have so frightened children, “that even a loud door slamming scares them into tears.”  He is fluent in Pashto and Urdu.

While covering the war between government forces and the Taliban, he was injured in an ambush and, later,  briefly kidnapped by militants.

“His reports serve as a great source of authentic information for those who want to know about the happenings in the tribal areas of the country,” says Sabir Aman, news editor of The News International.

www.thenews.com.pk