A final-year student, Philip Teye Agbove, has once again brought honour to the African University of Communications and Business (AUCB) after winning Best in Community Reporting at the 2025 CJID’s West African Excellence in Journalism Awards.
Organised by the Centre for Journalism Innovation and Development (CJID), the awards celebrate journalists whose work significantly advances democracy, development, and public accountability across the region.
Mr. Agbove, an investigative journalist with The Fourth Estate, is known for his hard-hitting reporting that exposes systemic failures, protects indigenous rights and vulnerable communities, and elevates public-interest journalism in Ghana.
He is one of 13 finalists selected from 275 entries across West Africa, whose works, according to the organizers, demonstrated innovation, professionalism, and measurable societal impact.
Mr. Agbove was honoured at an award ceremony on Wednesday, November 26, 2025, held as part of CJID’s annual Media and Development Conference in Abuja, Nigeria. The winners were highly commended and celebrated at the prestigious event.
His winning story, co-authored with freelance journalist Justice Baidoo, was titled “Death and Brutality: The Battle for West Africa’s Largest Salt Deposit.”
The multi-part investigation exposed the implications of leasing the Songor Lagoon, West Africa’s largest salt deposit located in southeastern Ghana, revealing how the concession became an epicenter of violent confrontations, state-backed land grabs, and human rights abuses – all concealed under the banner of economic development.
Following the investigation, the affected communities regained their economic survival, and Parliament, the Presidency, and Operation Recover All Loot (ORAL) were petitioned to look into the human rights violations and circumstances surrounding the lease of the resource to a private investor.
According to the Chair of the CJID Award Committee, Kemi Busari, the recognition highlights Mr. Agbove’s “outstanding contribution to journalism and your role in advancing development and democracy in Africa.”
Now in its second edition, the CJID Awards recognize excellence in categories including climate change, investigative reporting, fact-checking, health journalism, community reporting, and social accountability. This year’s awardees were selected through a rigorous review process conducted by an independent panel of distinguished media professionals from across the continent.
Speaking to AUCB’s campus publication, AfroNovaOnline, Mr. Agbove reflected on his achievement, saying journalism remains a service to humanity and a tool for public good.
“This award reminds us that journalism is a force for justice when we remain committed to truth, courage, and service to society,” he said.
He commended AUCB for its hands-on training grounded in Africanity and the preservation of Africa’s indigenous culture and resources.
“At AUCB, we continue to discover and strengthen our foundation. Every recognition I receive is a win for the institution that believed in my potential and continues to hone my talent and skills,” he added, noting that students of AUCB are “ambassadors of the school wherever we go.”
He noted that the honour further motivates him to pursue stories that spark reforms, amplify neglected voices, and uphold the highest standards of ethical reporting.
This is not the first time Mr. Agbove has brought recognition to AUCB.
In March this year, he won the Konrad Adenauer Stiftung (KAS) Media Award for Local Journalism in Africa, a prestigious continental honour. He was later shortlisted for the 2025 Amnesty International Media Awards in the UK and was among four journalists celebrated at the 2025 TRACE Prize for Investigative Reporting in the United States. He also won Best News (Online) Journalist of the Year at the Ghana Journalists Association (GJA) Media Awards last year.
Following his shine at the GJA, AUCB management expressed pride in his accomplishments, stating that his achievements reflect positively on the institution’s training and values. The university presented him with a citation acknowledging his dedication and impact on the media landscape.
Mr. Agbove was recognized alongside three distinguished AUCB alumni excelling in journalism: Beatrice Senadju Boateng, formerly of the Ghana Broadcasting Corporation (GBC); Stanley Nii Blewu of Media General; and Moses Abaa Apiah of A1 Radio.
At the 2024 AUCB Student Representative Council (SRC) Excellence Awards, Mr. Agbove received the Presidential Award for his outstanding exploits and for continuously bringing honour to the school.
