FOTEA announces the winners of the 14th edition of the Uganda Press Photo Award (UPPA), the 8th edition of East African Photography Award (EAPA), and 10th edition of the Young Photographer Award (YPA). With our continued partnership with Fujifilm, the year’s competition winners will be awarded Fujifilm cameras and kit lenses.
The East African Photography Award now in its eighth year, is open to East African visual storytellers Burundi, Ethiopia, Kenya, Rwanda, Sudan, South Sudan, Tanzania and Uganda. It celebrates documentary and artistic work that reflects the contemporary existence of people, the planet, and other stories of life in East Africa.
This year, EAPA continues to grow steadily with Sudanese photographers taking centre stage this year, showcasing their talent and resilience despite the challenging circumstances in their country.
Amar Abdalla (SD), takes home the top stories prize for his captivating work, ‘Temporary Homes’. Chosen from a competitive pool of submissions from across the region, Amar’s collection of photographs are a chilling reminder of the consequences of civil unrest through his exploration of his family’s displacement by the war, highlighting their daily experiences in the new environment and how they adapt to their new home while keeping vivid memories of their old one. The story also reflects on how they cope with the challenges of displacement and find ways to live and belong even in temporary places. Amar takes home a Fujifilm X-T5 camera and XF 16-50 kit, courtesy of Fujifilm Middle East FZE.
Katumba Badru (UG)’s portrait, ‘What Next,’ winner of the Planet category, was also selected as the overall Single Image winner. The powerful image captures people looking for their loved ones after flooding and landslides in Masugu on November 29, 2024. Through this poignant portrait you get to share the sense of loss in the wake of devastation. Badru takes home a Fujifilm X-T50 camera and XF 16-50 kit, courtesy of Fujifilm Middle East FZE.
EAPA 2025 was judged by a jury composed of regional and international photography professionals including Martin Kharumwa – Photographer and Gallerist (UG); Tsvangirayi Mukwazhi – Photojournalist (SA); Maggie Soladay – Photo Editor at The Open Society Foundations (US); Luis Tato, Photo Editor AFP (SP/KE); Sana Ullah – Senior Program Officer National Geographic Society (US).
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The Uganda Press Photo Award (UPPA) continues its tradition of recognizing the best documentary photography and photojournalism in Uganda.
Timothy Akolamazima responded to the call with a story ‘Beyond the Barre: Stories of Ballet in Uganda explores the quiet rise of ballet in a country where it exists on the cultural fringe, documenting the resilience, passion, and determination of young dancers who pursue the art despite economic, social, and structural barriers. Timothy takes home a Fujifilm X-T50 camera and XF 16-50 kit, courtesy of Fujifilm Middle East FZE.
UPPA 2025 was judged by a jury composed of regional photography professionals including Documentary Photographer Ala Kheir (SD) and Photojournalist and Documentary Photographer, Edward Echwalu (UG) and Documentary Photographer Maheder Haileselassie (ETH).
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The Young Photographer Award (YPA) is an educational initiative aimed at nurturing emerging photographers with a passion for documentary photography or photojournalism. The winner, along with the runners-up, will have the opportunity to participate in an intensive Mentorship Programme. This programme offers a bootcamp-style course, providing hands-on learning about photography, while also guiding participants in developing a documentary photography project under the mentorship of an industry professional.
Agaba Joel Gabriel takes home the 2025 Young Photographer Award. Agaba is a Kampala-based DJ, photographer, and theatre maker whose multidisciplinary practice explores memory, place, and belonging through experimental works rooted in preservation and everyday life. Agaba receives a Fujifilm X-S20 camera with XF 16-50 kit, courtesy of Fujifilm Middle East FZE. They also get an invitation to participate in next year’s Emerging Photographer Mentorship Programme, where she will have the opportunity to further develop her project and showcase her work during UPPA 2025.
This year’s edition was judged by photographers Zahara Abdul (UG), Dennis Kimbugwe (UG) and Esther Ruth Mbabazi (UG).
Congratulations to all the shortlisted photographers!
An exhibition presenting all the winning images from this year’s East African Photography Award, Uganda Press Photo Award and Young Photographer Award will open to visitors from Thursday, September 25th at MoTIV Uganda until October 13th.
The show will also feature work from Barbra Mercy Leni, a winner of last year’s Young Photographer Award, showcasing the outcome of her participation in this year’s Emerging Photographer Mentorship Programme.
Barbara presents her project titled ‘Salt Mining on Lake Katwe’ which vividly showcases the vital but hazardous livelihood of miners. It details their endurance of harsh conditions and health risks for meager pay, underscoring the urgent need for formal protections, better tools, and health support; highlighting a critical gap between Uganda’s labor policies and the harsh, unprotected reality of their informal livelihood.
This year our partners and sponsors include Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung Uganda, Fujifilm Middle East FZE, Embassy of Sweden in Uganda, EU Delegation in Uganda and Future Generation Foundation.
THE COMPLETE LIST OF WINNERS
East African Photography Award
Category: Story
- Amar Abdalla (Sudan)
- Jeremiah Onyango (Kenya)
- Maureen Gathoni (Kenya)
HM. Daniel Irungu Mwangi (Kenya)
HM. Sosina Mengistu (Ethiopia)
Category: Human
- Israa Alrrayah (Sudan)
- Donwilson Odhiambo (Kenya)
- Donwilson Odhiambo (Kenya)
HM. Lucas Oyugi (Kenya)
Category: Planet
- Katumba Badru (Uganda)
- Anthony Ochieng Onyango (Kenya)
- Edwin Ndeke (Kenya)
HM. Anthony Ochieng Onyango (Kenya)
Category: Imagine
- Natnael Ashebir (Ethiopia)
HM. Kevin Ochieng (Kenya)
Uganda Press Photo Award
- Timothy Akolamazima
- Serina Efrance Kirabo
- Vanessa Mulondo
HM. Tumwine Peter Simon
Young Photographer Award
- Agaba Joel Gabriel
- Victor Kibalama
- Hannah Bitebekezi
HM. Sandra Agwico
(HM = honourable mention)
