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Frenny Jowi – Award-Winning Journalist, Public Speaker, and Environmental Advocate

About Me.

Frenny Jowi is an award-winning journalist, dynamic public speaker, and passionate environmentalist renowned for her innovative storytelling and steadfast commitment to social change. As a key contributor to the BBC World Service, she shines as a radio documentary producer and presenter, currently playing a pivotal role on the celebrated Focus on Africa radio and podcast series.

Consultancy Work.

Alongside her journalism career, Frenny provides expert media consultancy to a wide range of international organizations and government agencies.

Her impressive client roster includes Freuds Communications, Finn Church Aid, Transparency International Kenya, The Constructive Institute, and One World Media, among others. One of her most notable consultancy projects involved offering media coverage expertise to former British Prime Minister Lady Theresa May during her official 2024 visit to Kenya.

Speaking Engagements.

Frenny’s influence spans global platforms—she has addressed audiences at the European Parliament in Brussels and, during her time with Media Focus on Africa, represented the organization at a distinguished cabinet meeting with former European Union Vice President Ms. Frederica Mogherini. Notably, she has engaged in thoughtful dialogue with former Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta on enhancing women’s participation in elective politics.

Her experience also includes moderating panels and serving as master of ceremonies at several high-profile media events.

Journalism and Media Development Work

As Journalism Lead at Media Focus on Africa,  Frenny co-founded the Kenya Media Week program, a press freedom initiative aimed at promoting journalism training and career development of reporters.

Frenny trained over 100 local journalists and produced more than 150 radio programs centered on gender equity and democracy.

She also spearheaded fundraising initiatives and played an instrumental role in creating the reality TV series Ms. President—a pioneering civic education initiative aimed at boosting women’s involvement in the democratic process, while simultaneously managing key donor and partner relations.

Frenny has worked as an Editor at the Africa Women Journalism Project, providing editorial guidelines to Pan African reporters from Tanzania, Uganda, Nigeria , Ghana and South Africa  on gender issues.

BBC Career Highlights

Before joining Media Focus on Africa, Frenny enjoyed a successful four-year stint with the BBC—one of the world’s foremost broadcasters. During her time in both Kenya and the United Kingdom, she drove numerous innovative projects, such as developing engaging digital content for younger audiences in Africa and orchestrating comprehensive news coverage of President Obama’s historic visit to the continent.

Her remarkable contributions to journalism have earned her a nomination for Kenyan Reporter of the Year at the 2014 Annual Excellence Awards in Journalism Kenya.

Other  Notable Works

In 2022, her team received the prestigious Information is Beautiful Gold Award for exemplary COVID-19 reporting with Data 4 Change.

Frenny’s consultancy expertise further extends to collaborations with esteemed organizations such as Hivos East Africa, Finn Church Aid, the World Alliance for Breastfeeding Action, Peter Burdin Africa, One World Media Foundation, the Constructive Institute, and the University of Central Lancashire in England. In addition, she has imparted her knowledge by teaching journalism at the Aga Khan Graduate School of Media and Communications.

Her international career has taken her to diverse destinations including the United Kingdom, Belgium, Malaysia, Zanzibar, Italy, Ghana, Tanzania, and Uganda. In recognition of her industry insight, she served as a jury member for two prominent international journalism awards organized by One World Media and the World Association of News Publishers in 2023.

When she’s not immersed in her professional endeavors, Frenny is an avid gardener and a devoted dog owner, continuously drawing inspiration from the natural world.