Striking images take top honours in UN anti-poverty photographic contest

Vietnamese fishermen bringing in their day’s catch, an Indian boy making his way to school and male and female Pakistani students working together in their engineering class are the winning images in a United Nations-backed photography contest aimed at illustrating the global fight against poverty.

Almost 1,400 contestants submitted more than 3,000 photos across professional and amateur categories, with a total of 22 prizes and honourable mentions awarded by a panel of jurors that included four photojournalists and the actor and UN Development Programme (UNDP) Goodwill Ambassador Antonio Banderas.

UNDP Administrator Helen Clark, who will hand out the awards today in New York, said the contest – now in its second year – helps to show that the series of anti-poverty targets known as the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) are “not just abstract targets, but about making a tangible difference in people’s lives.”

Miss Clark said that “it is our hope that through showcasing these real and positive actions, more people will be motivated to contribute to this effort.”

Mr. Banderas said he hoped the images would be part of a “wave” that could influence heads of State who will gather at UN Headquarters in New York next week to chart how to make progress on the MDGs by their 2015 deadline.

“It is inspiring to see ordinary people doing something positive to achieve these Goals as they go about their daily lives – children and adults studying in complex environments, local organizations advocating for women’s rights, powerful campaigns to improve people’s health,” he said.

UNDP organized the Picture This: We Can End Poverty contest in partnership with Olympus Corporation and the Agence France-Presse (AFP) Foundation.