Kampala, May 8th, 2014
I’m probably one of the few people who jumped on the technology train at its last stop before it started speeding off into the future. I’m still catching up on so many things and I’m aware that I’ll never be as good and creative as some of the amazing people who have created entries for this year’s ACEA Awards.
The process of evaluating the entries was not easy. First, they were many and then, many of them were absolutely amazing. Just the time to read and understand the 129 short-listed proposals was long and very lucky we had Easter and Labour Day to do it.
Meeting the Judges and interacting with such a varied team was a new experience for me. In advertising and media, we rarely have the opportunities to step outside our own worlds and step into the unknown. I loved being the one among the chosen few and I’m glad UCC team chose me.
I am certain that the best entries won in a transparent and engaging judging process.
I hope my contribution to choosing the winners was a good one: I looked for a practical, useful and valuable application of the entry, enhancing what Uganda already has and building the communities and society as a whole. I’m glad we together chose the winners without any major controversy.
For next year, I hope to be on the panel again and I hope to play a part in the process that precedes the judging. Criteria for entries haas to be very clear and achievable; we must also reach out to technologists and communities that are otherwise not easily able to participate. UCC has a unique space to create an idea pool, a space for brilliant minds, and I so hope I will be a part of it in the future.
