Finalists For Social Media Awards Africa 2014

After many weeks of palpable excitement, the finalists for the Social Media Awards Africa (SMAA) are finally unveiled.

The 43 finalists represent the successful entries received from over 26 countries for the maiden edition of the continent-wide recognition and reward platform which features 15 awards across 4 categories.

The SMAA journey began with the call for nominations over a 27 day period. On November 18, 2014, the voting stage commenced with the hashtag #SMAA2014 garnering over 92.91 million cumulative impressions on twitter in about three months. This was simultaneously conducted with the judging by an eminent Jury of experts and professionals (Fred Swaniker, Founder & Executive Chairman, African Leadership Academy; Eric Chinje, Chief Executive Officer, African Media Institute; Ken Banks, Founder, kiwanja.net; amongst others)  drawn from various fields across Africa. The rigorous voting process and evaluation by the SMAA Virtual Council and Jury were based on five criteria: Influence, Originality, Creativity, Scalability and Impact. The nominees’ votes accounted for Fifty per cent (50%) of the cumulative scores and Jury scores accounted for another Fifty per cent (50%).

Here they are, the 2014 Social Media Awards Africa Finalists:

PERSONALITY BASED (Awards for individual achievements in social media):

– Blogger of the Year

Philip Etemesi         Kenya
Ogunsaya Jide       Nigeria
Ben Kiruthi             Kenya

– Social Media Personality of the Year

Ayari Yassine           Tunisia
Japheth Omojuwa     Nigeria
Luyando Haangal      Zambia

Social Media Hero

Japheth Omojuwa      Nigeria
Michael Hlatshwayo   South Africa
Xtian Dela                  Kenya

PLATFORM (Specific Social Platforms):

– Facebook Page of the Year

All4 Women                   South Africa
Barefootlaw                   Uganda
Comedy Central Africa South Africa

– Twitter Handle of the Year

@jimitewe – Jimi Tewe         Nigeria
@XtianDela – X-tian Dela    Kenya
@omojuwa – Japhet Omojuwa Nigeria

– Influencer of the Year (LinkedIn, YouTube, Google+, Instagram)

The Love Tour KE           Kenya
Kemi Omololu-Olunloyo   Nigeria
X-tian Dela                       Kenya

INSTITUTIONAL (Best Use of Social Media by):

– Government/Public Sector

Republic of Rwanda Ministry of Youth and ICT Rwanda
Kenya National Youth Service                           Kenya
Ekiti State Government                                     Nigeria

– Private Sector

Informer East Africa        Tanzania
DHL Africa                       Kenya
Popi Media                      South Africa

– Non-Profit

Stand to End Rape Nigeria
Nil
Nil

– Start-up/MSME

Adforumco      Nigeria
AIM Group      Tanzania
TVyangu         Kenya

– Financial Institution

Stanbic IBTC       Nigeria
KCB Group          Kenya
Access Bank        Nigeria

INDIGENOUS (Local Campaigns and Brands):

– App of the Year

ICOW Kenya
Afrinolly Nigeria
MPesa Kenya

– Hashtag of the Year

#TheNiteTalk Kenya
#letsnotpretend Ghana
#choice4life Nigeria

– Brand of the Year

Raha 2.0 Tanzania
Jumia-Nigeria Nigeria

Vodafone Ghana Ghana

INDIGENOUS (Local Campaigns and Social Media Hero)

Japheth Omojuwa              Nigeria
Michael Hlatshwayo          South Africa
Xtian Dela Kenya

PLATFORM (Specific Social Platforms):

– Facebook Page of the Year

All4 Women                  South Africa
Barefootlaw                  Uganda
Comedy Central Africa South Africa

– Twitter Handle of the Social Media Hero

Japheth Omojuwa             Nigeria
Michael Hlatshwayo          South Africa
Xtian Dela                         Kenya

PLATFORM (Specific Social Platforms):

– Facebook Page of the Year

All4 Women                  South Africa
Barefootlaw                  Uganda
Comedy Central Africa South Africa

For more information, visit www.smaafrica.com

Source: Olorisupergal