The Thomson Foundation has announced 12 finalists for its 2026 Young Journalist of the Year Award, selected from 217 entries representing 56 countries across four continents. Run in partnership with the UK’s Foreign Press Association, this year’s finalists include journalists investigating war, corruption, exploitation, human rights abuses and abuses of power. Nigeria has two journalists among the finalists: Hauwa Shaffii Nuhu, whose seven-month investigation for HumAngle examined the rise and recruitment networks of Boko Haram, and Aaron Atsahyel, whose documentary for Trust TV follows women and children from a community where 42 men were allegedly arrested by the military and have not been seen since.
The international shortlist also includes journalists from Malaysia, Ukraine, Indonesia, Mexico, Yemen, Algeria, Sierra Leone, DR Congo and Kenya, with investigations ranging from child sexual abuse material and unsafe fishing practices to labour exploitation and human trafficking. Si Err Yap of Malaysia investigated the use of social media platforms to distribute child sexual abuse material, while Heorhii Shabaev of Ukraine examined a politician’s business and political connections. In DR Congo, Alain Kanyombo documented women working in dangerous mining conditions, while Kenyan journalist William Kamau spent eight months investigating the alleged trafficking of job seekers into online fraud compounds in Myanmar. Other finalists include Rafly Pratama, Humberto Basilio, Afrah Borji, Douha Amrani, Patricia Ngevao, Ndidiamaka Ede and others whose reporting brings overlooked communities and abuses into public view.
The Thomson Foundation says many of the finalists have worked for months on investigations despite challenging reporting environments. Catherine Mackie, Thomson’s Learning Manager, described their work as demonstrating “extraordinary bravery and tenacity,” noting the continuing impact of several investigations. The winner will be announced at the Foreign Press Association Awards in London in November. The Young Journalist of the Year competition is open to journalists aged 30 and under from countries with a gross national income per capita below $20,000, placing the award within a wider effort to recognise emerging journalists producing public-interest reporting under difficult circumstances.
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