Zain Verjee to set up shop in South Africa, Nigeria

Former Kenyan TV personality Zain Verjee, who worked as a CNN news anchor for 14 years, plans to open new offices in South Africa and Nigeria for her media company. The firm, Zain Verjee Group, currently operates in Nairobi and New York.

However, Ms Verjee, who quit her job at CNN in April, said she did not have specific dates for the opening of Johannesburg and Lagos offices.

“The world is changing and there are many new opportunities for me to consider,” she told the Business Daily. “I’m interested, especially in the digital and mobile delivery of African content, both globally and in the continent. I’m very interested in helping grow and train our local talent pools.”

Zain Verjee Group offers consultancy and advice on programming for African businesses and investors interested in venturing into the continent. Ms Verjee said she wants Africans to tell their own story in diverse voices.

The journalist said she facilitates this through mobile and digital platforms which are at the core of her business. The group has managed to win prominent clients since it began its operations.

“My main project since leaving CNN has been for Bloomberg Philanthropies and the US Department of Commerce where ZVG (Zain Verjee Group) created a series of videos across Africa which were played for a high-level audience at a historic Africa Summit in Washington DC hosted by President Obama in August. It was an incredible experience for me,” she said.

Ms Verjee said she had a growing interest in being a part of Africa’s new growth story and wanted to be more of a participant than observer.  

“As I approached a new phase in my life and balance family and creative writing, the freedom to articulate my own ideas and opinions is becoming more important to me so I thought I would take a definitive step in that direction,” she said of her decision to leave the global news channel.

Ms Verjee also hints at the possibility of getting new partners to back her. She started working for CNN in her mid-20s after a stint at Kenyan radio station Capital FM and TV channel KTN as a news anchor.

“CNN has been special and wonderful to me since I was 25- years -old, and I will continue to have a warm relationship with it for many more years to come,” she said. 

The TV personality was not specific on the exact amount of capital investment she requires to grow the firm, but she said she was certain it would be an involving project.

“I intend to put in a lot of sweat, tears and time.  It’s a whole different experience for me which is extremely exciting,” she said.