Uganda Press Photo Award

We promote the best of today’s photojournalism and documentary photography in Uganda and East Africa. We exist to support visual literacy and to encourage a new generation of photographers by focusing on photographic education through our programmes.

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The Uganda Press Photo Award (UPPA) was originally conceived in 2012 as a competition for Ugandan photojournalists and photographers who strive to keep the public informed of the daily news, sometimes at great risk to themselves. Over the years we’ve grown into a platform which not only promotes the best of today’s photojournalism and documentary photography in Uganda, but also supports a broad programme of visual literacy and visual education. We also seek to remind the viewing public of the importance of creativity, freedom of expression and vibrant press for democratic development. 

The award soon became just one small part of a much larger organisation, and in 2016 we established the FOTEA Foundation to support the growing scale of the award and other satellite activities. FOTEA's aim is to bring together photographers and other visual storytellers, to encourage unique voices that document and engage with social change in Uganda and East Africa. Activities now under the purview of FOTEA include the Awards, Emerging Photographer Mentorship Programme; workshops, photography talks and panel discussions, film screenings, portfolio reviews, and exhibitions.

Founded in 2012, the Uganda Press Photo Award (UPPA) is the longest-running photography competition in Uganda, and is only open to Ugandans. Each year, the winner takes home a professional DSLR cameras, as well as the opportunity to showcase their work in our annual exhibition and publications which features some of the best visual storytellers Uganda has to offer. 

The annual East African Photography Award (EAPA) is open to citizens from Burundi, Ethiopia, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania and Uganda. Each year entrants are invited to share multi-image stories on any topic that they find interesting, and the judges look not only at the individual images but also at the overall story's quality and relevance. The Award was created to shine a spotlight on documentary photography that focuses on people and cultures from the perspective of East African citizens. Through this we hope to promote and encourage the documentation of the fast-changing realities around us, and the cultural, socio-political, environmental and technological issues that affect individuals and societies and the way we live. 

The Young Photographer Award is an educational award geared towards passionate emerging photographers looking to cultivate a career in documentary photography or photojournalism. The winner of the competition receives a DSLR camera and, together with the runners-up, gets an opportunity to participate in an intensive Mentorship Programme. The programme is designed to give young photographers a chance to learn more about photography with our bootcamp course as well as developing a documentary photography project under the guidance of an industry professional. The photographic outcomes of the mentees are exhibited in Kampala.