LONDON—“Touching Lives Through A Determined School Child,” a campaign conducted by Nigerian PR firm Modion Communications on behalf of Lumos Nigeria, was awarded the Platinum SABRE Award for the best public relations campaign of the year at last night’s African SABRE Awards, which were presented digitally for the second consecutive year.

The campaign began with the story of Dele Fathia, a Nigerian schoolgirl who was using the light from one of her town’s ATM machines to study by, because her family had no electricity. Working with Lumos, the county’s leading solar and renewable energy provider, the agency worked to install the company’s power system in Dele’s home.

“This was a campaign that understood the power of one person’s story to illuminate a broader issue,” said Paul Holmes, who chaired the SABRE jury. “The company took tangible steps to improve the situation, drawing wider attention to a serious issue and establishing itself as a leader in its market.”

The “Touching Lives…” campaign beat out four other finalists for the Platinum SABRE. They were:
2.Shoprite Group Corporate Image — The Shoprite Group Communications Team
3. Kazi Mtaani — State Department for Housing and Urban Development with Oxygène Marketing Communications
4. Rebuilding Stakeholders' Trust in Kenya Airways — Kenya Airways with Edelman Africa
5. Project Fabric Campaign against the ban of second-hand clothes — Mitumba Association of Kenya with Hill+Knowlton Strategies Kenya

Africa’s largest retailer Shoprite Group, headquartered in Cape Town, and clients of global public relations giant FleishmanHillard and South African firm Clockwork each received four trophies during the event.

Other multiple winners included Africa-based firms Tribeca PR and LSF PR (three awards each) and Eclipse Communications and Oxygène Marketing Communications (two); and multinational agencies BCW (three trophies across its African network), Edelman and Hill+Knowlton Strategies (two).

A complete list of the honorees can be found here.