Pulitzer Center Lavwa Lenpak African content creator program 2026 for African content creators ($500 participation stipend)

Application Deadline: August 26, 2026

Applications are now open for the 2026 Pulitzer Center Lavwa Lenpak African content creator program. Join the second cohort of Lavwa Lenpak, our program for content creators in Africa, and learn how to use investigative journalism to engage your community and make an impact. 

This second edition of the program is dedicated to governance and human rights in the forestry sector, with a particular focus on the Congo Basin.

Pulitzer Center is seeking African content creators to contribute in strengthening their status as trusted voices within their communities, drawing inspiration from journalism. 

By equipping content creators to better understand issues of public interest, strengthen their critical thinking, and produce reliable content, Lavwa Lenpak builds a bridge between Pulitzer Center-supported journalism and audiences in Africa, transforming complex journalistic investigations into accessible, engaging digital content tailored for social media.

Requirements

Lavwa Lenpak is seeking 10 content creators who are willing to learn journalism-based content creation and whose audience consumes content about the Congo Basin region or Africa. You can apply if:

You create content on TikTok, Instagram, and Facebook.

You have an established online community and an engaged audience.

You are interested in public interest issues, education, social justice, governance, transparency, accountability, natural resources, forest protection, or community rights.

You are open to learning and developing content inspired by investigative or public-interest reporting.

You are open to making complex subjects understandable and engaging for your audience.

You are based in or create contents on the Congo Basin or Africa.

The program welcome applications from content creators, issue-based influencers, journalist-creators, and community voices.

Benefits 

• Access to Pulitzer Center-supported reporting and journalistic resources. 
• Opportunities to collaborate with journalists, as well as personalized feedback on their content. 
• Masterclasses on disinformation and the role of trusted voices, creative storytelling, and scriptwriting. 
• A participation stipend of $500, paid at the end of the program upon approval of all required deliverables.
•  The opportunity to contribute to a broader conversation on accountability, forest governance and human rights in Africa.

APPLY HERE