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The 71st edition of the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity has now ended and all awards have been distributed. The Middle East had its fine share this year, bringing home a total of 24 Lions: 1 Grand Prix, 3 Gold, 5 Silver, and 15 Bronze.

The biggest regional winner is IMPACT BBDO Dubai who managed to earn the region’s only Grand Prix. This is Impact BBDO’s fourth Grand Prix Lions in five years, and the fifth for the UAE.the agency also won 1 Gold, 2 Silver, 3 Bronze Lions.

“Child Wedding Cards” by UN Women and IMPACT BBDO won the coveted Cannes Lions Grand Prix for Good in Health. This campaign campaign has successfully collaborated with lawmakers to combat child marriage in Pakistan, a country that currently has the sixth highest number of child brides, and efforts have been ongoing to lift the minimum age for marriage to 18. 

Dani Richa, CEO and Chairman, BBDO EMEA, said, “Winning a Grand Prix in Cannes is rewarding on multiple levels, with the most significant being the opportunity to shine a spotlight on this important cause on a global stage.”

Ali Rez, Regional Chief Creative Officer at IMPACT BBDO commented, “This campaign demonstrates the true power of creativity: the ability to deliver a highly impactful message without relying on massive budgets, and an emphasis on emotional voltage. We are fortunate to have a brave brand partner like UN Women, who have been incredibly inspiring in the way they have been fighting this important fight against child marriage.”

Impact BBDO was also named regional network of the year. For the seventh consecutive year, the agency has managed to secure its top position in the MENA region at Cannes!

The Publicis Groupe Middle East saw LEO BURNETT Dubai scooping 1 Gold, 1 Silver, 1 Bronze; LEO BURNETT Jeddah winning 1 Gold, 3 Bronze including one gold and one bronze for ProtecTasbih’s Saudia; and SAATCHI & SAATCHI ME Dubai received 1 Silver and 1 Bronze.

About “Nets of Change” NBA campaign, which snatched one gold and one silver Lions, Tahaab Rais stated on LinkedIn: “Great ideas fly. Literally.  Another example of doing work on big brands that leads to big wins. Another big win for us for Leo Burnett MEA (Middle East & Africa) Dubai with NBA India for the work we've been making as part of its "Nets for Change" initiative, produced by Prodigious ME. 1 Campaign Gold and 1 Campaign Silver comprising 4 Silver Lions at the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity.  A beautiful visual campaign encompassing jumps from one's current reality to one's alternate reality thanks to the poetry of basketball, documented via beautiful craft that's poetry in motion too: The Great Indian Dunk. This entire thing was special…” 

FP7 McCANN Dubai bagged 1 Silver for ‘Highlight your balls, the testicular cancer society’ campaign in partnership with MCN media agency – UM / MAGNA Global and 5 Bronze including  Ketch-up Insurance, Heinz – in collaboration with MCN PR agency - Current Global; 3 bronzes for After Dinner Dinner, McDonald’s in partnership with MCN PR and media agencies – respectively Weber Shandwick and UM Dubai.

And one bronze lion in Creative Commerce for Selfless Shelves, Puck – in collaboration with MCN PR agency Current Global.

Also it is worth mentioning that in an extraordinary achievement, FP7McCann was the only agency from the MENAT region to be shortlisted for the prestigious Titanium Lions, an honor that celebrates groundbreaking creativity, provocative ideas, and a visionary shift in the industry.

“On behalf of the entire team, I extend my heartfelt thanks to our clients for their collaboration and boldness in creating impactful and pioneering work. I am immensely proud of our teams for their unwavering commitment to placing creativity at the core of our business impact for clients,” commented Tarek Miknas, CEO of FP7McCann.

FLOWARD MENA, DUBAI / IMPACT BBDO Cairo won 1 Silver for ‘Works like magic campaign - The Mobster copy’ in the film category.

MULLENLOWE MENA / McCANN HEALTH, Dubai won 1 Bronze.

Paul Banham, CCO MullenLowe MENA stated on his linked in page: “Well, just 3% of Cannes Lions Pharma entries grabbed a Lion - that's 7 lions awarded from 224 entries.

So I'm immensely chuffed that MullenLowe MENA's work for Organon in partnership with McCann Health is in the top three percentile.

Our MissDiagnosed campaign for Organon was a 14-month labour of love to bring awareness to a largely unknown issue - the lesser-known signs of women's heart attacks.”

SERVICEPLAN MIDDLE EAST, Dubai received 1 Bronze for BMW.

Last but not least, ADPRO OMD Amman also won 1 Bronze.