NMG goes continental with new digital aspiration, nation.africa

The Nation Media Group on Friday transformed into a full digital brand with the launch of a flagship website, nation.africa, which aims to transform Africa by empowering audiences through information, education and social engagement.

Interior Cabinet Secretary Fred Matiang’i, who was the chief guest at the launch in Nairobi, congratulated NMG for taking the bold yet important decision to venture where many on the continent haven’t, and said the government will stand by the company as it makes the transformation.

“There is no serious government that is not going to invest in digital transition and hope to succeed. The Nation is to Kenya what the New York Times or The Washington Post are to the US,” said Dr Matiang’i.

Saying this was the beginning of a great journey for the Nation and the nation,  Dr Matiang’i said NMG’s place as Africa’s second-largest media organisation is the product of constant innovation, professionalism, and a desire for “the truth”, even when that truth is uncomfortable. He challenged the company to target a global platform in the future.

Group Board Chairman Dr Wilfred Kiboro said the new journey targets the entire African continent, in line with the vision of the company’s founder, His Highness The Aga Khan. The company has grown from only one title, Taifa Leo, “to become the largest and the most influential multimedia house in East and Central Africa,” said Dr Kiboro.

Reader revenue

In the new digital space, NMG will place greater focus on growing reader revenue from content as it explores new revenue streams in the events and technology space. “We will be charging for some of this content, but we assure you that it will be value for money,” said Dr Kiboro.

Over 75 per cent of Kenya’s population is aged 35 and below, according to last year’s census report, and this is the audience whose tastes and preferences are changing how companies think about the consumer of the future.

Dr Kiboro said for a long time the media house’s vision has been “Media of Africa for Africa,” which has now come to fruition as the company repositions to a pan-African brand. The new brand “will decolonise the African mind that has kept the continent poor despite the abundance of resources and intellectuals in the continent,” he said, adding that the platform will help Africa play its rightful role in the global gig economy.

Cabinet Secretary for Information, Communication and Technology, Innovation and Youth Affairs Joe Mucheru said NMG was now walking “towards what our Head of State has been doing in terms of policy”.

Noting that NMG’s digital transformation began 15 years ago, Mr Mucheru said that, with a higher internet and smartphone penetration now, the company stands to reap from the more than 1.3 billion Africans who will be impacted by its stories.

Group CEO Stephen Gitagama said nation.africa is “an expression of massive ambitions on a global scale”.

Realise dreams

“It will take many years to realise those dreams,” said Mr Gitagama. “We are like cathedral builders who knew that neither they nor their sons would live to see the completed work, but so strong was their dream that, with stout hearts, they built anyway.”

Mr Mutuma Mathiu, the Group Editorial Director, said the company’s new mobile-first focus will bring all the 69 NMG brands under one roof, and pledged quality journalism on the legacy platforms that have served the nation for decades.

The company, the region’s largest media organisation, recently redesigned its print editions in Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania and Rwanda, and revamped its content offers, including introducing new magazines.

“We are not abandoning our traditional business; broadcasting and print. We continue to invest in them, as you have seen in the recent days,” he said. “When we are done, you will have a fine-quality, multimedia, interactive, intuitive mobile experience. What you see on our platform today is merely the beginning. We have just done one kilometre of the marathon; we are saving the best for last.”

Daily Nation Executive Editor Pamella Sittoni said, “Nation intends to give consumers content wherever, whenever and however they need it.”