The British High Commission and the Journalists Environmental Association of Tanzania (JET) has teamed up to organize a journalism competition on climate change.

A statement issued over the weekend in Dar es Salaam said the move was part of British government's commitment to ensuring that the voices of people in the least developed countries were heard at the coming Copenhagen Summit on Climate Change.

Contributors of the two best entries - be they written articles, radio items or short films - would go to Copenhagen at the expense of the British High Commission, from where they would be able to cover the summit.

For journalists with interest in the environment and international affairs, this competition offers a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to be part of the historic event, according to the statement.

There would be two titles for entries to the competition: 'Water and climate change' and 'How climate change is impacting on Tanzania'. Entries must be on either of these themes.

The statement said that journalists could choose any angle related to the themes, but the winning entries would be expected to focus on specific, community-based impacts of climate change rather than merely providing a list of the sorts of impacts that are being felt in Tanzania.

For written entries, the statement said, the maximum length would be 1,500 words; for radio entries, 5 minutes and for films, 10 minutes. The entries would be judged by a panel consisting of representatives of the British High Commission, UK Department for International Development, JET and the environment watchdog, NEMC. All entries must be submitted in English. The deadline, which would be strictly adhered to, is 30 September. Winners would be informed by the middle of October, according to the statement.

“The summit is a key event where decisions on how the world plans to address the challenges caused by the changing climate will be raised,” read the statement in part.

The UK is committed to ensuring that the views of people from the least developed countries, including Tanzania, are heard at the summit and Tanzanians would be well informed about the summit's progress and outcomes, said the statement.