An editor with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), Miss Martha Agas, has won the Woman in Media Award at the 2026 Women Changing the World Global Summit and Awards in Paris.
Agas was announced the winner on Wednesday following an independent assessment by an international panel of judges.
She had earlier been named among the five finalists in the category on March 9, after emerging from over 1,500 nominations submitted across 97 countries.
The award recognised her impactful work as a development journalist, using storytelling to amplify the voices of vulnerable and marginalised communities while drawing attention to critical social issues.
In the same category, Karen Sander received an honourable mention, while Kirsty Nancarrow emerged as second runner-up and Sharon Swietek was named third runner-up.
Speaking during the presentation, the co-founder of the organisation, Katy Garner, congratulated Agas on the achievement and commended her for her outstanding contributions to the media industry.
She said the awards celebrate women who were distinguishing themselves through exceptional contributions in sustainability, humanitarian work, leadership, advocacy, education, health and innovation.
She added that the awards were designed to recognise the increasing number of women making positive impact while inspiring others to do likewise.
Responding, Agas described the award as an encouragement to do more impactful reporting in amplifying the voices of vulnerable and marginalised communities for appropriate action.
“I feel honoured by this award and inspired to do more as a development journalist. I am confident it will further expand my network and platform because, beyond the headlines, there are many untold stories that need attention,” she said.
She noted that many women often assume their hard work goes unrecognised, especially in environments where visibility and recognition were limited, but urged them not to relent in their efforts.
She stressed that consistent commitment and resilience eventually create meaningful impact and encouraged them to continue making a difference in society.
NAN reports that the Women Changing the World Global Awards was established to recognise women making significant impact across communities, industries and countries worldwide.
Other award recipients include Sally Grice, Woman in Innovation; Glory Sujitha,Woman in Tech and Adebola Ogungbadejo, Advocacy Impact Award.
Others are Stella Kikoyo, Gender Empowerment; Eunice Sari, Disability Leadership and Jessica Hansen, Humanitarian Impact among others.
