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Hill+Knowlton Strategies wins at MENA Young Lions PR

PRCA MENA has announced Hill+Knowlton Strategies’ team of Mohamad Saber and Peter Hermina as the winners of the MENA Young Lions PR Competition for their ‘Half a Million Dollars’ campaign. The third year of the competition saw over 28 entries from teams of two, all creating effective and creative campaigns as per a brief from Education for Employment. Sponsored by the International Communications Consultancy (ICCO), the team will go on to represent the region at the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity that will take place from June 17 – 21, 2018.

“It was inspiring to see the amount of passion, creativity and energy being put into the PRCA MENA Young Lions entries,” says Alex Malouf, Corporate Communications and Reputation Manager – Arabian Peninsula, Procter & Gamble, and part of the judging panel for the awards. “The short-listed entries combined sharp insights, innovative strategies and extensive use of measurement. The finalists made our decision very tough at the end of the day and I’m confident that the PRCA MENA Young Lions winners will do the region justice in Cannes.”

Leanne Foy, General Manager, PRCA MENA, adds “I would like to congratulate Mohamed and Peter on their win. We wish the pair the best of luck in Cannes where I am sure they will do the industry and the UAE proud.”

New appointment at PRCA

Georgia Ramm joins the Public Relations and Communications Association (PRCA) as International Relations Officer. Currently completing her masters in public relations and corporate communications, Georgia will be responsible for increasing international engagement for the PRCA (UK and MENA) as well as developing initiatives for the International Communications Consultancy Organisation (ICCO).

“Georgia’s appointment as the new PRCA International Relations Officer will allow us to increase our international work even further,” says Francis Ingham, Director General, PRCA UK and PRCA MENA. “We already manage ICCO, operating in 55 countries around the world and have an office in Dubai. We will now ramp up our activity, exploring other markets where the PRCA can usefully establish itself, and increasing the range of services we provide to members in the UK, MENA and elsewhere.”

Weber Shandwick wins at MENA Young Lions

PRCA announces Weber Shandwick as the winners of the MENA Young Lions Competition for their ‘#spareoneminuteforchange’ campaign. The second year of the competition held by PRCA saw teams create an effective campaign as per a brief given by Dubai Cares. Sponsored by ICCO, the team, Angelina Hedra and Viviana Villasmil will get to represent the region at the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity that will take place from June 17 – 24, 2017.

“We are absolutely delighted that Angelina and Viviana were selected by the PRCA to represent Middle East PR industry at the Young Lions Competition this summer,” says Andreas Keller, Managing Director, Weber Shandwick MENA. “We’ve had many Weber Shandwick teams take part in this competition over the last two years as it provides an excellent platform for young PR professionals to experience the realities of developing integrated campaigns for clients in a pressured environment. Producing Cannes Lions award winning work is something that all agencies aspire to do. This will undoubtedly be a very memorable and enriching experience for both consultants.”

Shortlist revealed for PRCA Awards

PRCA MENA has announced the shortlisted nominees for its inaugural awards ceremony that will take place on February 8, 2017 at the H Hotel, Dubai. The nominees include: Q Communications, Seven Media, TOH PR, Memac Ogilvy, Markettiers and Grayling as well as Hill+Knowlton Strategies, among other agencies of the region.

The awards will honour agencies and media professionals across 13 categories – B2C Campaign, sponsored by HAVOC Creative; B2B Campaign; Crisis Communications, sponsored by LexisNexis; Digital Campaign, sponsored by Markettiers; Influencer Relations; Integrated Campaign, sponsored by TINT; Media Relations; Regional Campaign of the Year and Rising Star, both sponsored by MCG Associates; Results on a Budget; PR Leader, sponsored by ICCO and Small Consultancy of the Year, sponsored by The Media Network as well as Large Consultancy of the Year.

“I am delighted to announce the shortlist for the awards,” says Leanne Foy, General Manager, PRCA MENA. “The work submitted demonstrated excellent work across the region. Congratulations to all shortlisted.”

Shortlist for ICCO Global Awards 2016 announced

The International Communications Consultancy Organisation (ICCO) has announced the shortlisted nominees for ICCO Global Awards 2016. Taking place on December 1, 2016 in London, the award nominees include Cohn & Wolfe for ‘Regional Network of the Year – EMEA’, Instinctif Partners for ‘Regional Independent Constultany of the Year – EMEA’ as well as House of Comms and Grayling for ‘World’s Best PR Campaign – Media Relations.’

“The ICCO Global Awards is an opportunity for the PR and communications industry to showcase the way in which the discipline can achieve real results through powerful outcomes,” says Charlene Corrin, General Manager, International Communications Consultancy Organisation. “An international jury reviews campaigns and teams from around the world, with a true focus on measurement and effectiveness. This year a number of campaigns were entered from the Middle East region, but the stand out work which has made the shortlist came from Grayling and House of Comms, both members of PRCA MENA.”

Golin MENA wins MENA Young Lions competition

The Golin MENA team of Baseem Ayache and Anisha Sharme has won the MENA Young Lions PR competition with their ‘Mirror Mirror’ campaign, and will go on to represent the region at the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity, sponsored by the International Communications Consultancy Organisation (ICCO). This year was the inaugural competition, and saw over 20 entries from teams of two, all under the age of 30. Competitors were asked to respond to a brief from Friends of Cancer Patients, which performed as the client, and each team had 24 hours to form a creative and effective campaign.

“There was some really, really great work on display from PRCA MENA members,” says Frances Ingham MPRCA, Director General, PRCA MENA. “Sitting through the eight presentations, it was obvious that the future of our industry here in the Middle East and North Africa is incredibly bright. Many deserve to be in Cannes, but only one team could win and that team was, deservedly, Golin. Golin’s duo went all in – great ideas, rigorous strategy. Literally pitch-perfect presentation. And now they have the honour and the burden of representing all of the MENA countries in Cannes. Good luck Baseem and Anisha.”

Ylannis Vafeas, Managing Director, Golin MENA, adds “There is nothing more inspiring than being recognised for creativity, especially when creativity leads to change and good. We are so proud of Baseem and Anisha who will be representing the Golin MENA region in the Young Lions PR competition.”