Kinshasa, March 2nd, 2023(CPA). – Russian and Congolese photojournalists are organising an exposition of their works in Kinshasa called: « Exposition of the winners of the annual international annual competition of press photo contest Andrei Stenine « , that the opening ceremony was presided on Wednesday at Universite Libre de Kinshasa or Free University of Kinshasa, (ULK) by the ambassador of the Russian Federation, Alexey Sentebov.
« This exhibition I have the honour of launching today bears the name of the Agency’s special photo Rossiya Segodnya correspondent Mr. Andrey Stenin, who was killed in August 2014 while covering the conflict in eastern of Ukraine, » said the Russian diplomat , before adding, « I keep the tradition of exposition tours of its winners to Russian cities and countries around the world and the geography of the competition’s exhibitions since its launching in 2014, which has already involved more than 40 cities in Europe, Asia, Latin America, Africa and the Middle East, and this is the umpteenth time it is being held in the Democratic Republic of Congo.«
Alexey Sentebov said that Stenin’s death came as a shock to his colleagues around the world, and to this day it is a testament to the true professional commitment of the journalist and that « the work of this media professional was an example of honesty, objectivity and valour of many photo reporters« .
« For his heroism in the performance of his professional duty, Mr. Stenine was posthumously awarded the Order of Courage of the Russian Federation, » he said, and thanked the rector of the university, Professor Jean Lucien Kitima Kasendwe, the members of the Board of Governors and their team for the assistance given to the Russian Embassy in the organisation of the exposition.
« We appreciate the cooperation with ULK and the numerous contacts in various formats such as conferences, teleconferences, expositions and other cultural and educational activities and we symbolically reaffirm the friendship and partnership between the two brotherly countries, » concluded the Russian ambassador.
Satisfaction of the ULK management committee
Earlier, the Administrative General Secretary of ULK, Professor Bob Bonzelyno, on behalf of the Board of Directors and the Management Committee of this institution welcomed the choice of their alma mater for the organization of this competition.
« This activity is part of the propagation of Russian culture throughout DRC because the young people who participate in this competition will be awarded by a jury composed of professionals in the field, » he continued.
The administrative general secretary promised to do everything possible for the total success of this cultural event in the interest of all students of the ULK and cultural operators of Democratic Republic of Congo.
Scheduled from March 1st to 07th, 2023, the international photojournalism competition will welcome several candidates who have come for that cause.
For the year 2022, 3,000 candidates representing the world’s leading media and photographers from 54 countries around the world had participated and the winners were awarded major prizes, it was reported.
The annual Andrei Stenin competition was established in 2014 by the Rossiya Segodnya media group as a platform for young photojournalists, talented, sensitive and open to new ideas, who draw our attention to current problems and challenges, under the auspices of Russian Commission for UNESCO Affairs.
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