Nigeria: Adventist Surgeon Receives UN Humanitarian Award ... Onuoha Clement, a pediatric surgeon and elder of the Seventh-day Adventist church in Yaba, Lagos, Nigeria, was one of six United Nations (UN) volunteers to receive an Award of Excellence for “commitment as ambassadors of volunteerism for development” during a ceremony at Port of Spain in Trinidad and Tobago on Dec. 20, 2006. Ad Melkert, UN undersecretary general and associate administrator of the UN Development Program, presented the award. Clement was specifically recognized for his part in organizing a walk against child hunger in Trinidad and Tobago in May of 2006. [Adventist Review/ANN Staff]

Kenya: ADRA to Aid Flooded Mandera District ... To combat the spread of water- and mosquito-borne illnesses caused by recent flooding in Northeastern Kenya, the Adventist Development and Relief Agency (ADRA) International is sending mobile clinics and health education teams to Kenya’s Mandera district. The floods, which hit after several years of drought, have devastated the homes and livelihoods of an estimated 730,000 in the region, wiping out food provisions and sanitation infrastructure. To ease the strain on local hospitals, which report the number of patients with flood-related diseases has nearly tripled, ADRA is partnering with Kenya’s Ministry of Health to provide direct medical treatment to at least 2,000 Kenyans. ADRA will also work with government and non-governmental agencies in the region to improve hygiene and sanitation conditions for some 15,000 people by spraying for mosquitoes and providing households with water purification tablets. [ADRA/ANN Staff]

Australia: Veteran Church Communicator Wins Award ... John T.J. Banks, a veteran Seventh-day Adventist Church communicator, who until recently was associate director for communication at the church’s world headquarters in Silver Spring, Maryland, was presented with the 2007 Bridge Award.

World church communication director Rajmund Dabrowski presented Banks with the award, which recognizes “lifelong service to corporate communication, media relations of the Seventh-day Adventist Church, and mentoring others in innovative Adventist media productions.” The award was established in 2001 by the Communication Department of the world church in recognition of outstanding contributions to Seventh-day Adventist communication, locally and internationally, and in particular for visionary thinking, fostering professionalism and excellence in responsible journalism, and relevance of communication through broadcasting and public relations and media productions. Banks is the fifth Australian recipient of the award. [ANN Staff]