The Aga Khan University Graduate School of Media and Communications seeks to provide quality journalism training and promote media research and entrepreneurship.
The first batch of students will be admitted in 2014. Prime Minister Raila Odinga presided over the foundation ceremony in Westlands, Nairobi’, on Wednesday. He was with the The Aga Khan, the chancellor of the university.
The media school will lay emphasis on multi-media integration and innovation, media management, specialised reporting and research. It will also have a centre for media entrepreneurship.
The courses will focus on ethics and independence, professionalism and social responsibility.
The Aga Khan said the school will offer journalists skills to project stories correctly and reflect the true image of Africa.
He added that the courses will be market-driven and help redress challenges facing the media in the developing world.
Through quality training, the institution will provide competencies to enhance reportage of Africa’s issues and reduce reliance on Western news agencies.
The Aga Khan said quality media can transform the continent and that past lessons must be reviewed and re-applied as new technologies are adapted.
“In earlier days, the absence of media freedom promoted poverty and misrule. Today, the media have become a critical tool in Africa’s economic and political transformation,” the PM said.
The focus on multimedia platforms and entrepreneurship, Mr Odinga said, will open up more opportunities for journalists and investors.
“We need African graduates of the highest quality who understand both the technology and the market place, and who can become visionary media managers,” Mr Odinga said.
He called on training institutions to emphasise truth, integrity and accuracy in reporting.
He said the phone hacking scandal that has led to the closure of Britain’s 168-year-old News of the World newspaper raised pertinent issues of ethics and responsibility.
“The lesson is, with proper training and solid professionalism, journalism still serves a positive role.
“The future belongs to the rigidly professional and the ethical. I believe this school will put our media on such a path,” the PM said.
He added: “We need our media to be the tool that enables our nation, our leaders and our citizens to communicate with one another, rather than shouting at each other.
“The seeds of competence in this task must be sown during training, and I am glad this is what the graduate school is setting out to do.”
Acting Higher Education minister Hellen Sambili said the school would expand training opportunities in the region.
The minister challenged institutions of higher education to establish a regional accreditation and quality check system to improve standards.
A new graduate school that will offer postgraduate media and communication training was launched in Nairobi on Wednesday.The first batch of students will be admitted in 2014. Prime Minister Raila Odinga presided over the foundation ceremony in Westlands, Nairobi’, on Wednesday. He was with the The Aga Khan, the chancellor of the university.
The media school will lay emphasis on multi-media integration and innovation, media management, specialised reporting and research. It will also have a centre for media entrepreneurship.
The courses will focus on ethics and independence, professionalism and social responsibility.
The Aga Khan said the school will offer journalists skills to project stories correctly and reflect the true image of Africa.
He added that the courses will be market-driven and help redress challenges facing the media in the developing world.
Through quality training, the institution will provide competencies to enhance reportage of Africa’s issues and reduce reliance on Western news agencies.
The Aga Khan said quality media can transform the continent and that past lessons must be reviewed and re-applied as new technologies are adapted.
“In earlier days, the absence of media freedom promoted poverty and misrule. Today, the media have become a critical tool in Africa’s economic and political transformation,” the PM said.
The focus on multimedia platforms and entrepreneurship, Mr Odinga said, will open up more opportunities for journalists and investors.
“We need African graduates of the highest quality who understand both the technology and the market place, and who can become visionary media managers,” Mr Odinga said.
He called on training institutions to emphasise truth, integrity and accuracy in reporting.
He said the phone hacking scandal that has led to the closure of Britain’s 168-year-old News of the World newspaper raised pertinent issues of ethics and responsibility.
“The lesson is, with proper training and solid professionalism, journalism still serves a positive role.
“The future belongs to the rigidly professional and the ethical. I believe this school will put our media on such a path,” the PM said.
He added: “We need our media to be the tool that enables our nation, our leaders and our citizens to communicate with one another, rather than shouting at each other.
“The seeds of competence in this task must be sown during training, and I am glad this is what the graduate school is setting out to do.”
Acting Higher Education minister Hellen Sambili said the school would expand training opportunities in the region.
The minister challenged institutions of higher education to establish a regional accreditation and quality check system to improve standards.
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