Last week, the Global Entrepreneurship Summit took place in Kenya hosted by President Uhuru Kenyatta and President Barrack Obama. While the summit was a success, it was not so much for Kenyan media. The media was highly ridiculed for the coverage of the event, for focusing on what Kenyans online felt were “non-issues”. In fact, a local media house failed to cover any of the entrepreneurs hosted at the event opting to talk about the deserted streets, President Obama’s official limo and the official jet.
With the standards of reporting becoming common place among local media, Safaricom and Strathmore Business School have today launched the second Safaricom Business Journalism Fellowship, an eight month, mid-career program that gives business journalists the opportunity to train alongside Kenya’s business lecturers and corporate news makers in the region. The course will admit 15 applicants, with each applicant undertaking three modules requiring four days of intensive training with business leaders. The initial program admitted 12 fellows who graduated last year.
The media was also challenge to re-learn their audience and deliver impactful news stories for their audiences. Safaricom CEO Bob Collymore spoke of the need by journalists to not just cover politics but offer in depth analysis of the economy. “But to do this successfully journalists must be armed with an understanding of the business environment and how to cover business news.” he added.
The fellowship program focuses on financial reporting, and will this year cover topics including: economic analysis, business strategy and financial analysis, big data and cyber security. During the eight month duration of the program the journalists will be expected to finish a 30-hour credit course before they can graduate. Interested parties can apply here
