About us
Africa Interactive is a young, dynamic and fast growing online media company with 900 local reporters in 43 African countries. Our reporters tell the African story in text, photo or video.
We produce tailor made 'High-end' videos and 'Simple Video Reports' to showcase your activities in Africa. On africanews.com our reporters have their own news platform. Besides, Africa Interactive organises and runs business-to-business media or/and communication projects either on the ground in Africa or online through website building, maintaining and feeding with content.
Today, Africa Interactive has become a specialist in African related communication projects.
Africa Interactive specializes in three things:
Local Content
Africa Interactive is building the largest Pan African news agency, a conglomeration of hundreds of local reporters and journalists. Currently we have a network of 700 local media professionals in 40 African countries but this network is growing week by week. We also invest in training and educational programs for our African reporters who want to further their media careers.
International Community
Creative Communication Tools
Africa Interactive has access to advanced technology -mobile reporting, multiple user applications, online publishing tools, digital magazines and electronic mailing possibilities.
Using mobile phones as a reporting tool is unique in Africa. We build dedicated websites for our clients and offer them more reach and impact by using their African stakeholders as communicators.
With these 3 components Africa Interactive works on creating awareness for your projects in Africa. But furthermore, your support enables us to empower media talent in Africa and that will greatly contribute to more awareness and improve democracy.
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Africa Interactive History
Africa Interactive was founded in 2006 by two Dutch journalists (Bas Vlugt, Peter Vlam) and an entrepreneur (Pim de Wit) with a passion for Africa. They felt that Africa was too often portrayed as a lost continent. They looked for ways to reveal Africa s great potential and to show the existing opportunities the continent has to offer. The founders are eager to give a more balanced view of the continent. To do so, they wanted African media talent to participate.
They were on a mission: why is this continent mostly portrayed as helpless, brutalised and war-torn. That wasn’t the Africa they knew: the fascinating, complex, dynamic continent as it is. The online magazine became a big success. In less than a year they created an enthusiastic community.
In the meantime Dutch publisher and Africa lover Pim de Wit red the newsletter and saw in it a business and a goal. The three started a company: Africa Interactive. An online publisher was formed. Today, Africa Interactive has become a specialist in Africa related communication projects.
In 2007 the company launched www.AfricaNews.com. In a span of several months the website has been able to attract a network that consists of 250 African media professionals spread across 32 African countries (end of April 2008). Two to five reporters register a day and their combined contribution can be seen on www.AfricaNews.com.
One important detail: the word Africa means nothing as such. We are aware of that. Let us quote journalist Ryszard Kapuscinski: “The continent is too vast to be described. It is a true ocean, a planet on its own, a rich and varied cosmos. For the sake of taste, we can simply say: Africa. In reality, Africa does not exist. It is only a geographic entity”.
Currently Africa Interactive maintains a network of 850 local reporters in 43 countries.
About the photo's on this page: The Ghanaian AfricaNews-photographer Nana Kofi Acquah attended the CAN final between Egypt and Cameroon on 10 February 2008. Egypt won the match and they were crowned as African football champions for the second time in a row.
See the complete series on AfricaNews.com.
Africa Interactive publishes Africanews.com
Africa Interactive also publishes the Dutch website AfrikaNieuws.nl, a community website for Dutch people travelling to Africa. Visit
Africa Interactive Team
Managing director of Africa Interactive. Graduated in philosophy, Pieter chose for a career in media. He was until recently self employed as a media consultant. Before that he was editor-in chief of Planet Internet and Manager Content Production at KPN Television and Media.
Favorite place in Africa: Being a passionate diver, I have spent my best experiences underwater in the spectacular Red Sea!
Co-founder of Africa Interactive / Content Development Director. He studied Social Sciences at the Free University of Amsterdam. Before that he worked as freelance journalist for various Dutch media such as Internationale Samenwerking, Vice Versa, OnzeWereld, DIF, NRC Next, NCDO and the Evert Vermeer Foundation.
Favourite place in Africa: Football field in Mathare, Nairobi. Watch the video about Metro Sports, a football team in Mathare. AfricaNews produced this pilot episode. Still looking for funding!
Project manager / editor. Bertil studied journalism in Utrecht and International Relations at the University of Amsterdam. He lived six months in Cape Town, South Africa, where he worked for the Cape Times newspaper.
Favourite place in Africa: Lion's Head, the mountain on the right side of the Tafel Mountain that can been contemplated from Cape Town city centre. From its top, you have a fantastic sight of the city bowl , the districts of Green Point, Sea Point, Clifton, Camps Bay, and the Twelve Apostles, the Tafel Mountain, Devil's Peak and the Cape Flats. From there you can also see Robben Island, where Nelson Mandela spent his years in jail.
Responsible for Partnerships with organisations and companies. She has a Masters in Gender and Development and worked for Save the Children as programme manager. She was born in Mauritania, grew up in Ethiopia and has been to several countries in Africa.
Favourite place in Africa: Absolutely impossible to say. Every country has its special places :-)
Stefan Kuit
Responsible for video-editing and script development. He has a masters in
Visual Anthropology at the University of Manchester, UK. Doing research on witchcraft for the University of Namibia he lived one year in Nyangana, northern Namibia.
Stefan has many years of experience both as cameraman and video-editor of
short documentaries, and worked as video journalist for the Volkskrant and the VPRO.
Favourite place in Africa: Rundu, Namibia.
Responsible for video-editing and script development. He has a masters in
Visual Anthropology at the University of Manchester, UK. Doing research on witchcraft for the University of Namibia he lived one year in Nyangana, northern Namibia.
Stefan has many years of experience both as cameraman and video-editor of
short documentaries, and worked as video journalist for the Volkskrant and the VPRO.
Favourite place in Africa: Rundu, Namibia.
Commercial Development. Ben studied International Management in Boston before working in public relations, government, IT and media consulting. He has worked in New York, Amsterdam, parts of Eastern Europe, the Middle East and Africa. Of all of the different places Africa continues to be the most interesting. Ben is drawn by Africa's fast growing economy and the opportunities presented by internet and mobile technology.
Favourite place in Africa: Internet cafes with printers....and Zanzibar
Editor of AfricaNews.com and part of the editorial team in Ghana. Kent holds a diploma in Journalism from the University of Education’s affiliate, Jayee Institute in Accra, Ghana. He owns a certificate in online journalism and multimedia. Kent has eight years working experience in print and online journalism.
Favourite place in Africa: Axim Beach, Western part of Ghana
Editor of AfricaNews.com and part of the editorial team in Ghana. Joseph's interest in journalism developed when he was young. He entered the Journalism school to study a two-year Diploma programme in Journalism. He has worked at many different Ghanaian media organisations.
Favourite place in Africa: Nzulezu, Ghana’s water village
Video-editor for Africanews.com. She holds a BFA Degree in Editing, awarded by the University of Ghana, Legon. Esme has gained lots of work experience from several media houses and television stations in Ghana. She loves to read and watch films of all genre.
Co-founder and advisor of Africa Interactive and initiator of the Africa Interactive Media Foundation. Pim de Wit was Chairman of the Board for Sanoma Publishers until November 2005 and has been a passionate of Africa where he has been travelling for years.
Favourite place in Africa: Luvuvhu River not far from Pafuri, South Africa.
Co-founder of Africa Interactive. Bas is a freelance journalist, writer and media consultant. He studied Social and Economic Geography at the University of Amsterdam. He toured 21 African countries, published three novels about Africa and wrote travel guides about ten African countries.
Favourite place in Africa: Guinea
Favourite place in Africa: North Africa