As
part of the major expansion of its offer for African audiences, the BBC
has announced the launch of its first ever TV news and current-affairs
programme in Kiswahili, Dira ya Dunia (World Compass).
From
Monday, 27 August, BBC World Service’s partner TV stations - Star TV in
Tanzania and QTV in Kenya – will broadcast BBC Swahili’s Dira ya Dunia,
bringing the viewers 30 minutes of latest global news and analysis from
the world’s leading international broadcaster.
Aired Monday to
Friday, Dira ya Dunia will supplement Star TV’s and QTV’s programming
with news coverage underpinned by the BBC’s global news services, giving
audiences access to world-class news content. The programme also draws
on the BBC’s strong presence across the continent, with correspondents
in 48 African countries, bringing their regional insights and expertise
to Kiswahili-speaking TV viewers.
BBC Swahili’s flagship radio
programme, Dira ya Dunia, is a household name for millions of listeners
in East and Central Africa as well as the diaspora audiences. With the
launch of the new TV news programme of the same title, the BBC is
further strengthening its offer, showcasing the BBC Swahili journalism
talent - London-based presenters Salim Kikeke and Charles Hilary, output
editor Mariam Omar, as well as reporters based in Burundi, DR Congo,
Kenya, Nigeria, Rwanda, South Africa, South Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda and
the UK.
BBC Swahili Editor, Ali Saleh, says: “With the launch of
Dira ya Dunia on TV, we are responding to the huge switch in news
consumption across Africa we have been witnessing lately, and to the
needs of our audience. As we report and analyse regional and global news
stories, be it politics, economy, business or culture, Dira ya Dunia
wants to be free of clichés often associated with the African news
coverage and will deliver BBC journalism in a dynamic and engaging
style, based on our long-standing principles of independence, accuracy
and unbiased reporting.”
The main presenter of Dira ya Dunia,
Salim Kikeke, adds: “I feel privileged and honoured to be part of BBC
Swahili’s move to TV broadcasting. We’ve put a huge effort into this
project, and I’ve enjoyed every minute of it. I hope very much that this
new TV programme will soon become essential viewing for audiences
across East and Central Africa.”
The unveiling of Dira ya Dunia is
part of a range of major new programming launched by the BBC this year
for Africa, on TV and on radio. It follows the recent launch of the
BBC’s first ever dedicated English-language TV news programme for the
continent, Focus on Africa, which is also available via Star TV in
Tanzania and now on NTV in Kenya. In July, days before the opening of
the Olympic Games in London, BBC World Service launched Newsday - a
flagship radio programme aimed largely at the breakfast audience in
Africa.
BBC Africa Editor, Solomon Mugera, comments: “Over
decades of multilingual broadcasting to Africa, the BBC has forged
unique relations with radio audiences across the continent, telling the
African story to the world and bringing the world to Africa. The BBC’s
growing multimedia offer is evidence of its deep roots and knowledge of
the continent. As we embark on this new journey, we are really excited
to be partnering with some of the leading broadcasters in the region.”
BBC
Dira ya Dunia will be broadcast Monday to Friday, at 21.00 local time
on Star TV in Tanzania and at 23.00 on QTV in Kenya. It also will be
available for viewing via the BBC Swahili website, bbcswahili.com.
The
BBC made its first broadcast to Africa more than 80 years ago. The
combined audience on radio and television makes the BBC the largest
international broadcaster in Africa