CITE Launches 2026 Awards, Opens Nominations for Zimbabwe’s Changemakers and Innovators
The Centre for Innovation and Technology (CITE) has launched the inaugural CITE Awards 2026 to recognise individuals and grassroots organisations making meaningful contributions to Zimbabwean communities, culture, innovation, and public life. Public nominations open on Monday 2 November 2026.
Here is the nomination link: https://cite.org.zw/cite-awards-2026-nominate-someone-making-a-difference/
Held under the theme “Celebrating the people, stories and voices shaping Zimbabwe,” the awards will spotlight community leadership, innovation, Zimbabwean storytelling and the preservation of the country’s historical memory. They aim to recognise achievements that often go unnoticed and amplify voices from across Zimbabwe and the diaspora.
“Across Zimbabwe, people are doing extraordinary work in their communities, developing solutions to everyday challenges, creating content that informs and inspires, and preserving stories that help us understand our past. The CITE Awards will give the public an opportunity to recognise and celebrate these contributions,” said CITE Director Zenzele Ndebele.
Six award categories:
- CITE Person of the Year: for an outstanding public contribution in Zimbabwe during 2026.
- Community Changemaker of the Year: for grassroots work that improves lives or addresses local challenges. This category is open to individuals and to grassroots community organisations.
- Young Innovator of the Year: for impactful innovations by individuals aged 18–35.
- Zim Diaspora Ambassador of the Year: for Zimbabweans abroad who positively represent and contribute to the country.
- ZPRA Liberation Archives Interviewee of the Year: for an interviewee featured in CITE’s ZPRA Liberation Archives, presented in collaboration with The Frontline and decided entirely by public vote.
- Content Creator of the Year: for original Zimbabwean content published in 2026 that informs, inspires or entertains with quality and integrity.
How to participate
Members of the public in Zimbabwe and the diaspora may nominate themselves or another eligible person or organisation through the official nomination form at [web address]. The form takes less than three minutes on a phone. Each nomination should name the nominee, select a category and briefly explain why they deserve recognition. Supporting links are encouraged; links to original 2026 content are required for Content Creator of the Year. Nominating and voting are free.
CITE staff, the judges, public office holders and political figures, and their immediate families, cannot be nominated. Full rules are available on the CITE Awards page.
Key dates
- 2–14 November 2026: Public nominations
- 16–20 November 2026: Eligibility checks, nominee consent and selection of finalists
- 23 November 2026: Finalists announced
- 23 November–11 December 2026: Public voting
- 14–18 December 2026: Vote verification and final judging
- 31/30 December 2026: Winners announced
Up to five finalists will be selected in each category. In the ZPRA Liberation Archives Interviewee of the Year category, the five eligible interviewees receiving the most nominations will become finalists. In the other five categories, final results will combine independent judges’ scores (70%) with verified public votes (30%). The ZPRA Liberation Archives Interviewee of the Year will be determined entirely by verified public votes, subject to eligibility checks.
Winners will have their stories told through a dedicated CITE feature or short film, reaching audiences across Zimbabwe and the diaspora, and will receive an official CITE Awards certificate and winner badge. Every finalist will be profiled by CITE. Together, these stories will form a lasting record of the people shaping Zimbabwe today.
Follow CITE on its website and social media, and use #CITEAwards2026, for the nomination form, category criteria, rules and voting updates.
ENDS
About CITE
The Centre for Innovation and Technology (CITE) is an accountability journalism organisation based in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe. It serves audiences in Matabeleland, across Zimbabwe and in the diaspora through its website, Facebook, X, YouTube, TikTok, Instagram and WhatsApp. CITE also runs the ZPRA Liberation Archives, a growing collection of first-hand interviews on Zimbabwe’s liberation struggle.
Media contact
Lesley Moyo, Editor · +263772369759 · lesley@cite.org.zw
