THE African media have been challenged to take the lead in peace building on the continent. The State Minister for Local Government, Alvera Mukabaramba made the remarks on Thursday at a ceremony to award radio journalists whose work has contributed to peace building. The competition was facilitated by Radio for Peace Building Africa (RFPA), a project supported by Search for Common Ground, an international organisation.Three journalists from Burundi, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Ghana were the winners of this year’s competition which was open to all Radio journalists across the continent.The function held in Kigali saw radio journalists from around the continent who have produced quality programming on peace and development in their communities, walk away with different awards.  "We should work hand in hand to foster peace around Africa. Radio is one of the most effective methods of communication in Africa. It has the ability to effect positive change particularly in conflict ridden areas,” Mukabaramba said.Baron Nkoy (DRC), Hortence Iradukunda (Burundi) and Umaru Sanda Amadu (Ghana) were awarded.  "Radio for peace building Africa is a regional platform that provides resources for African journalists to produce radio programming that encourages peace building efforts across the continent,” said Summer Brown, a regional advisor for SCC.Brown said that recently, they partnered with the Ministry of Education to develop a computer application to help primary school students learn about conflicts, its causes, and effective ways to resolve it.Search for Common Ground is an international conflict transformation organisation dedicated to the mission of transforming the way the world deals with conflict, away from adversarial approaches towards problem solving.