Muscat: The Ministry of Information honoured the winners of the 2026 Media Excellence Competition at a ceremony held at its theatre on Monday, under the patronage of Dr Madiha bint Ahmed Al Shaibani, Minister of Education, and in the presence of Dr Abdullah bin Nasser Al Harrasi, Minister of Information.
The competition received 432 entries across 21 categories in four main fields: journalism, radio, television and electronic media. The submissions comprised 115 entries in journalism, 85 in radio, 100 in television and 132 in electronic media. The competition aims to encourage creativity and innovation among Omani media professionals, recognise outstanding work and promote excellence across media institutions and digital platforms.
In journalism, Faisal Al Alawi of Oman newspaper won the journalistic dialogue category for “An Interview with Iraqi Poet Arif Al Saadi”. Hamoud Al Mahrazi, also of Oman, won the journalistic article category for “Youth and the Labour Market: Skills Gap or Opportunities?”
Abdulwahid Al Hamdani of Oman won the photojournalism category for his photograph of the Mazafen, a traditional art accompanying the Razha dance in Nakhl that embodies courage and skill. Faisal Al Alawi of Oman won the investigative journalism category for “How Does the Palestinian Red Crescent Operate Within a War That Strips International Humanitarian Law of Its Meaning?”
In radio, Youth Radio won the talk show category for Your Health in Ramadan. Oman Radio’s General Radio won the family programme category for Mabahij, radio drama for Dilshad, and cultural programme category for Cultural Windows. Sultan Qaboos University’s Hala FM won the main committee’s encouragement award for Hala.
In television, Oman Television’s General Channel won the talk show category for Sukna, the variety programme category for Souq Mutrah, the documentary programmes and films category for Al Sarb, and the children’s programme category for Qumrah. Oman Sports Channel won the sports programme category for Fursan Al Tahadi. A report titled “A Youth Project in Al Jabal Al Akhdar Embodies Omani Creativity in Transforming Plants into Natural Products”, produced by the Oman News Agency News Center and Oman Television, won the governorate reports category.
In electronic media, Al Tilmeez, the YouTube account of the Nabdh Al Shabab electronic channel, won the electronic visual channel programme category for institutions. The YouTube podcast Mis’ad won the podcast category, while the “This Is Omani” local content campaign, featured on the social media accounts of the Projects and Tenders Authority and local content initiative across Instagram, X, TikTok and YouTube, won the digital media campaign category. Ishraq Educational, published by Ishraq Press and Publishing Foundation, won the electronic newspapers category for institutions.
Mohammed Al Gharibi won the social media content creator category for his YouTube series Hathi Oman (“This Is Oman”). The news accounts award was withheld because the sole entry failed to achieve the minimum qualifying score of 75 per cent.
In the electronic content category for media students at higher education institutions, Sultan Qaboos University students won for their Instagram campaign “Man Qal?” (“Who Said?”), titled “Media and Information Literacy about Artificial Intelligence for the Omani Child”.
Speaking at the ceremony, Mohammed bin Saeed Al Balushi, Under-Secretary of the Ministry of Information and chairman of the competition’s main committee, said the awards reflected the ministry’s commitment to empowering media professionals, improving institutional performance and fostering competition to strengthen skills and develop media content.
He emphasised the media’s responsibility to reinforce national identity, deepen public understanding of national issues and present accurate information in its proper context. He added that responsible media helps build public trust, counter rumours and misinformation, promote dialogue and social cohesion, and strengthen national belonging.
The competition, whose first edition was held in 2004, continues to promote professional excellence and innovation while responding to developments in the media landscape, including artificial intelligence and digital content creation. This year’s accompanying programme included a lecture on “Future Media: Creativity and Innovation in the Age of Artificial Intelligence” and a workshop on television drama scriptwriting.
The ceremony also featured an artistic performance depicting a journey of perseverance and creativity centred on a character named Fikra (“Idea”), who confronts challenges and transforms obstacles into opportunities. Omani drama actors Saleh Zaal and Fakhriya Khamis participated in the presentation, which celebrated artistic continuity and achievement.
A performance titled “Oman Media” celebrated the country’s print, audio and visual media heritage, revisiting memorable dramas, programmes and television quiz shows. The presentation also featured a group of schoolgirls, highlighting Oman’s rich media history and its enduring place in the public’s cultural memory.