Heavily Guarded NBS TV news anchor Canary Mugume's 'Sex for Pads' feature story has scooped the Best Television feature story award in the HIV & SRH Media Awards.
When NBS Television Canary Mugume and his team set out to probe claims of teenage girls offering men sex in exchange for pads, he might not have imagined how many lives the story he told would change.
In the ‘Sex for Pads’ story that ran months ago, the celebrated investigative journalist cum news anchor told the stories of teenagers who had been impregnated during the lockdown, some by men who demanding sex after they bought them pads.
The piece touched many people that watched in the comfort of their living rooms. Some organisations such as Reach A Hand Uganda (RAHU), National Womenswear Council (NWC) and AFRIPads even moved to take action. And today, a total of 800 teenage girls in Kasese District in Western Uganda were all smiles as AFRIPads in partnership with RAHU and NWC delivered sanitary pads and underwear that will help each of the girls in their monthly menstrual cycles for one year.
AFRIPads donated the pads worth Shs24m through its charitable arm, AFRIPads Foundation. RAHU’s Kasese-based peer educator network offered basic menstrual health hygiene training while NWC gave logistical support, delivering the kits from Kampala to Kasese. The distribution of the menstrual kits and underwear happened at 17 health centres. These included: Bugoye, Bwesumbu, Hima, Ibuga Refugee, Kabatunda, Katooke, Karambi and Kasese Municipality. Others were: Kinyamaseke, Kitswamba, Kyarumba, Muhindi, Muhokya, Mukathi, Mushenene, Nyabirongo and Nyabugando.
The feature piece has been recognised in the HIV & SRH Media Awards thereby leading Canary to be recognised by an award for his dedicated efforts.
"The story ‘Sex for pads’ has been awarded the Best 2021 Feature Story for TV category in the HIV & SRH Media Awards by @ACME_Uganda," Canary Mugume tweeted excitedly while presenting g off his award.
The United Nations Joint Programme on HIV and AIDS (UN-JUPSA), Uganda Aids Commission, the Ministry of ICT and African Centre for Media Excellence (ACME) launched the media awards on HIV/AIDS, sexual and reproductive health, and gender-based violence in December 2020, to honour distinguished reporting on Uganda’s aspirations to achieve universal access to HIV prevention, treatment, care and support, halting and reversing the spread of HIV, and contributing to the achievement of related Millennium Development Goals.
Additionally, to recognise the contribution of journalists, media managers and owners, and independent content creators in achieving the UNAIDS
