Digital channel drives African women’s narrative
by TINTSWALO BALOYI
JOHANNESBURG – A ZIMBABWEAN-founded platform is making the most of modern technology to empower African women on the continent and abroad.
Thando Channel, founded by Sapi Bachi, comes at a time African social media bloggers and commentators utilising social media platforms to overturn the longstanding Afro-pessimistic stereotypes.
Such stereotypes portray Africa as a “backward” characterised by strife and poverty.
Thando Channel is a video-on-demand digital platform.
Content produced on the channel is driven by “a desire to showcase and unleash the power, grace, creativity and the strength of African women.”
The channel aims to explore ways to progress a gender as well as race.
According to executives, it creates opportunities for brands to connect and find relevance with today’s African woman.
“Thando Channel aims to provide a platform for Africans to tell their authentic stories,” Bachi said.
She said the aim was also to inform, educate, entertain and empower African women holistically.
They have partnered with women leaders and broadcasters across Africa, including Valentine Njoroge, the Kenyan broadcaster and influencer.
Statistics indicate that social media presents a powerful platform for creating multiple stories about Africa.
According to author Simona Varrella (2021) countries in North and Southern Africa had the largest share of social media users in the continent.
In North Africa, 45 percent of the population used social media, while in Southern Africa this figure stood at 41 percent.
In Central Africa, only eight percent of the people used social media, the lowest rate across Africa, the lowest regional share worldwide.
– CAJ News
