Why I believe in Africa: Kojo Oppong Nkrumah (Ghana’s ace broadcast journalist)

 
ABOUT KOJO OPPONG
His determination to reach the top is what has made him one of the best broadcasters in town. is a broadcaster with Joy FM, one of the leading radio stations in the country.
He is the brain behind the Read 100 project which gives children the opportunity to read a story book on air and help revive the waning interest in reading.
Kojo, who started school at the Pentecost Preparatory School at Koforidua in the Eastern Region, was one of the intelligent pupils in the school. He always placed first or second in his class examinations.
However, things changed when he moved to Accra with his mother who was then a teacher. In Accra, he gained admission to the St Bernadette’s Soubirous School at Dansoman.
After the terminal examination, Kojo found himself at the 34th position. This humiliating result made him sit up and work harder in order to be among the best pupils.
“I felt so shy and bad about my position because I was almost last. As a result, I had to stay up in the night to read my books over and over again since the competition in my new school was keener,” Kojo recounted these experience when the Junior Graphic asked him to share his successful story.
Giving an insight into his job, he said he hits the airwaves just after the 6.00 a.m. news when others are preparing for work or taking their shower to start the day, but his day actually starts two hours earlier when he prepares to leave home for work — when you and I are snoozing and turning in bed.
According to him, his day begins as early as 4:00 a.m. when he rises from bed. After pondering over some of the previous day’s activities, he gets ready and drives to the office by 5:00 a.m. and sits behind the console to go on air after the 6:00 a.m. news on weekdays.
Kojo came into broadcasting by chance. He was spotted by Multimedia Broadcasting CEO, Mr Kwesi Twum, while making a presentation five years ago after graduating with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Business Communication.
Impressed with Kojo’s excellent performance, Mr Twum immediately requested that he joined the Joy FM family as an intern to which he obliged.
“In fact, I didn’t know the fundamentals of broadcasting. However, I was taught a lot of things by some of my senior colleagues on daily basis. Consequently, I found broadcasting very exciting and challenging,” he disclosed.
In spite of his achievement in his young life, he is determined to forge ahead.
Beyond broadcasting, Kojo provides marketing service advice to corporate bodies and individuals who need his services. Beaming with smiles, he disclosed that his future ambition is to establish his own organisation to provide world-class marketing services for potential clients.