IMPACT BBDO has been named Middle East and Africa (MEA) Agency of the Year at the 2026 London International Awards (LIA), while Lebanese newspaper AnNahar has won the MEA Brand of the Year title.
The recognition marks IMPACT BBDO’s third MEA Agency of the Year win at LIA in five years. The agency’s performance was led by two campaigns: The Untaught History Edition, created for AnNahar, and Limitless Learning, developed for Google Gemini.
The Untaught History Edition won the inaugural Grand LIA in the newly established Democracy and Human Rights category, marking the first Grand LIA for the campaign and a significant achievement for the region.
The campaign addressed the absence of a unified and truthful account of Lebanon’s modern history in school curricula. Drawing on more than eight decades of AnNahar’s journalistic archives, it transformed the newspaper’s historical records into an independently verified account of the country’s past, making it accessible to a new generation of Lebanese readers.
The campaign also secured multiple Gold and Silver awards, making it the most awarded work from the MEA region at this year’s festival and contributing to AnNahar’s recognition as MEA Brand of the Year.
The agency’s other recognised campaign, Limitless Learning, was created for Google Gemini.
Ali Rez, Regional Chief Creative Officer at IMPACT BBDO, said: “The MEA Agency of the Year title reflects IMPACT BBDO’s commitment to creating work that competes at the highest level. We continue to champion the kind of creativity that solves business problems, while delivering on cultural impact – as is demonstrated in our winning work for AnNahar and Google Gemini. I’m immensely proud of our people, and our client partners who trust us to think big.”
Barbara Levy, President of London International Awards, said: “IMPACT BBDO’s achievement at LIA 2026 is a testament to the power of ambitious, meaningful and impactful creativity. The Untaught History Edition is particularly significant, as it represents the very spirit of our inaugural Democracy and Human Rights category. It signifies work that uses creativity to stand for something bigger than a brand. It is a powerful example of how our industry can make a genuine contribution to society. We congratulate the entire IMPACT BBDO team on this outstanding recognition.”
The latest recognition adds to a successful year for IMPACT BBDO, which has also topped the MEA region at D&AD, One Show, AdFest and WARC Effectiveness.
