×

Our award-winning reporting has moved

Context provides news and analysis on three of the world’s most critical issues:

climate change, the impact of technology on society, and inclusive economies.

Third Prize (Tied): Photos - Maria Francesca Avila

by Maria Francesca Avila | Transparency International
Tuesday, 13 August 2013 16:26 GMT

A bridge is meant to provide fast and safe connections for people. Not so for this bridge in southern Luzon, Philippines. Public works and highway departments are allocated a budget to build a bridge. But what if the bridge is unfinished? How do people get to work and schoolchildren to their classrooms? Are they supposed to wade across the waters and pray they don’t get swept away or get sick? Do we simply turn a blind eye and let them suffer endlessly, oblivious to the needs? Photo taken early 2013.

Image Caption and Rights Information

* Any views expressed in this article are those of the author and not of Thomson Reuters Foundation.

PHOTOGRAPHER:  Maria Francesca Avila 

Maria Francesca Avila was awarded a third prize (photos catagory) in a youth photography and writing competition, launched by the Thomson Reuters Foundation in partnership with Transparency International (TI) to mark the 20th anniversary of TI, one of one of the world’s leading anti-corruption organisations. We asked young people between the ages of 18 and 30 to depict corruption and how to combat it. The competition was judged by Thomson Reuters Foundation, Transparency International and professional journalists and photographers.

In her words:  “I am involved in outreach programmes that often allow me to travel into the remotest parts of the country. And it is during these travels that I encounter and witness the hardships faced by some of my countrymen and women due to a lack of support from the government.”

Maria Francesca Avila, 25, is a software developer for an international company based in the Philippines. She began taking photographs when friends invited her to join  their camera club. She likes travel photography, documenting the places she visits and the people she meets, and experiencing the different cultures.

-->