The Executive Council of the African Union of Broadcasting (AUB) has a new President. Her name is Keitirele Mathapi. She is also the General Manager of the Department of Botswana Broadcasting Services. She was elected by her peers during AUB’s 11th General Assembly held from March 12 to 16, 2018, in Kigali, Rwanda. Mrs Mathapi replaces Dr Kwame Akuffo Annoff-Ntow, General Manager of the Ghana Broadcasting Corporation (GBC), who has spent two years at the head of AUB’s Executive Council.

Following her election, the new president promised to work with all the components of the Union. Three other countries have joined the Executive Council of the AUB: Côte d’Ivoire (1st Vice-President). The Newly elected Bureau of AUB’s Executive Council. Left to right; Mr Zakaria Hachlaf (SNRT- Morocco), Mr Jean-Luc Nyakouri (RTI- Côte d’Ivoire), Mrs Keitirele Mathapi (DBS- Botswana), Mr Arthur Asiimwe (RBA- Rwanda), Mr Grégoire Ndjaka (AUB-CEO). Rwanda (2nd Vice-President) and Morocco (3rd Vice-President).

1rst Vice-President: Mr Ahmadou Bakayoko

Ahmadou Bakayoko is a graduate of Ecole Polytechnique de Paris and the Advanced School of Telecommunications. He began his career in San Francisco, California with a $ 600 million investment fund as a financial analyst. He later returned to France as an Organization Consultant with Capgemeni Consulting. In this position, he has participated in numerous restructuring missions for European groups. In 2009, he joined Canal + Group’s Canal Overseas Africa subsidiary where he became Director of Development. With these experiences, he returned to Côte d’Ivoire in August 2012 to join RTI as Deputy Director General in charge of Channels, Diversification and Resource Development. In May 2013, Ahmadou Bakayoko was appointed Director General of Ivorian Broadcasting Corporation (RTI).

2nd Vice-President: Arthur Asiimwe

For the past five years, Mr Arthur Asiimwe has been the Director General of Rwanda Broadcasting Agency (RBA), the national public broadcaster of Rwanda with footprint across the country and broadcasting via satellite and online. As Director General, Mr Asiimwe doubles as the Editor-in-chief of the national broadcaster and also oversees day-to-day operational demands of the institution that runs the national TV and eight radio stations with slightly over 300 employees. He has been a journalist for the past 18 years and previously served as Managing Editor of Rwanda’s only English Daily, The New Times, correspondant for news agencies like Reuters (6 years), the Associated Press (AP), UN-IRIN News Network and the East African Newspaper, mainly covering the Great Lakes Region. Prior to joining RBA, Mr Asiimwe was the Director of Rwanda Health Communication Centre (RHCC) of the Ministry of Health. He pursued a Masters Degree in Journalism (M.A Journalism) from Carleton University, Canada and a Masters Degree in Public Health from the National University of Rwanda. Mr Asiimwe also holds a diploma in strategic business leadership from Swedish Institute of Management. He is a former chairman of Media High Council of Rwanda, the State Regulatory body of the media and also currently chairs the board of Rwanda printing and publishing company Ltd that publishes Imvaho Newspaper.

3rd Vice-President: Mr Zakaria Hachlaf

Mr. Zakaria Hachlaf is the Acting Legal Director of and Human Resources Director at the National Broadcasting Corporation (SNRT) – Morocco. He is a member of the Committee of Legal and Public Affairs of the European Broadcasting Union as a Legal Adviser. Graduate in Public Management from the Higher Institute of Administration in Rabat and certified in Administrative Law and Risk Management and Crises of the National School of Administration (ENA) of Paris, he also holds a higher degree in private law, a postgraduate degree in Human Resources Management and Competence Engineering from the Faculty of Education Sciences, in Rabat. Currently he is a lawyer and researcher in private law at the Faculty of Legal, Economic and Social Sciences of Mohammed V University, in Rabat. In addition to his experience in the field of higher education as a lecturer and / or visiting professor in various public institutes and in different faculties, Mr. Zakaria Hachlaf also held several positions of responsibility in various organizations, particularly in the field of Heritage management, renewable energies, audiovisual production, offshore logistics and public works among others. President of the Board of Directors of the Association of Laureates of the Higher Institute of Administration (ALISA), since 2008 he is a permanent member of the Scientific Committee of the European Circle of the Third Industrial Revolution in Brussels. Irène Gaouda (With additional notes from the concerned) #Anglais