The British High Commission (BHC) organised a pre-departure briefing for the seven Pakistani journalists who have been awarded the Chevening South Asia Journalism Fellowship (SAJP) 2017 on Monday.
The briefing was attended by this year’s scholars from Islamabad, previous Chevening SAJP scholars, and officials from the British High Commission. Scholars who had been selected from Lahore, Karachi, and Quetta joined the briefing through Skype.
Speaking at the briefing, the Press Attache and Deputy Head of Communications at the BHC Andrew Cuff said, “The South Asia Journalism Programme is a great professional development opportunity to identify and support the next generation of media leaders from the region. The scholars selected this year are from all across Pakistan and represent some of the country’s most highly respected media organisations. I am confident that these journalists will benefit greatly from the UK’s tradition of academic excellence and make positive contributions to the media landscape in Pakistan. 2017 also marks the 70th anniversary of UK-Pakistan relations and our Chevening South Asia Journalism Programme is an important part of the great relationship we share with Pakistan.”
The seven scholars who have been selected for the fellowship this year are Nida Tahseen and Muhammad Irtaza from The Nation, Adil Ali from Dunya TV, Dawood Shah from Daily Balochistan Times, Kamran Muhammad from Geo TV, Dr Muhammad Zubair Iqbal from PTV, and Hina Ali who works as a freelancer.
The Chevening SAJP is a fully-funded residential programme run at the University of Westminster and aimed at mid-career journalists from South Asia.
The selected journalists will participate in seven weeks of lectures, visits, and discussions that introduce them to key UK academics and political figures.
They will also spend time meeting their peers in some of the UK’s top media organisations, as well as running a symposium on a topic of their choice in the final week.
Since 2012, 19 journalists from Pakistan have participated in the programme. The fellowship offers talented Pakistani journalists the opportunity to undertake a bespoke programme titled “Good Governance in a Changing World: the Media, Politics, and Society,” at the University of Westminster.
