GIJ aims at matching global standards in journalism as it launches 60th anniversary

The Ghana Institute of Journalism has announced the launch of its 60th Anniversary, scheduled for 10am on Friday, 1st March 2019, at the forecourt of the institute in Osu, Accra.

The 2019 celebrations aim to connect alumni, students, corporate Ghana, and numerous friends and supporters of GIJ.

The Institute will also launch both a Digital Media Hub project and a GHC100 million endowment fund at the event.

The Rector of the Institute, Prof. Kwamena Kwansah-Aidoo, said “The purpose is to solicit funds and also to leverage earnings from the endowment fund to build an international Digital Media Hub and establish a global standard program that matches the best programs in journalism and communication education worldwide.”

He explained that the digital facilities and program resources will enable GIJ produce communication stars who possess competence and talent equivalent to what can be found anywhere in the world.

“It is time for Ghana, and Africa, to tell our own stories on the world stage,” said Prof. Kwansah-Aidoo.

The theme of the 60th Anniversary is "GIJ: Celebrating Our Past, Inspiring Our Future".

“Ours is a grand story, which began when GIJ was established in October 1959 as the first school of journalism in Sub-Saharan Africa. For six decades the Institute has focused on journalism and communication education and is credited with producing the majority of Ghana’s media professionals, corporate communicators, advertising and public relations practitioners,” said Dr. Lawrencia Agyepong, Chairperson of the 60th Anniversary Committee.

Overall, GIJ has produced numerous renowned media and communication leaders and alumni who operate at the forefront of their chosen fields.

Sixty years ago, Dr. Kwame Nkrumah founded the school to produce journalists who would play a key role in emancipating Africa from colonialism. Today, well-trained and ethical communicators are just as critical forachievingGhana’s democratic and developmental goals.

As the premier communication university in the country, GIJ’s leadership in educating journalists and communicators in the last sixty years has helped to produce a strong media that is promoting democracy and accountability for development in Ghana and beyond.

Endowment Fund and Digital Media Hub Project

GIJ’s vision is to produce world-class professionals for the transformation of society. That is why the Institute is embarking on a quest to strengthen its technological and program capacity to produce digital-age communicators for the current media landscape and the next generation.

Building on the Institute’s deep experience of six decades in communication education, GIJ is pursuing an ambitious plan to establish a world-class Digital Media Hub that will provide leading-edge technology to serve local and international students, faculty, and professionals. The Hub will be equipped with digital media departments such as Research and E-library, as well as centres for digital audio-visual, online news and current affairs, graphics and adverts design, and digital print production.

Proceeds from the GHS100 millionEndowment Fund will help the Institute set up a program that meets global standards in practical training to equip talented students and professional journalists with superior writing and analytical skills and a solid knowledge base so they can address complex national and international issues adequately.

2019 Anniversary Celebrations

The 60th Anniversary celebrations will feature exciting activities through to October 2019 including exhibitions, public lectures and an academic conference, health walk, fundraising events, and culminate in October with an alumni homecoming, grand durbar, and gala.