Update 10:37: Citizen TV news anchor and 1st Kenyan Komla Dumor Award winner Waihiga Mwaura on Tuesday, September 1, relayed a heartfelt message to the 2020 winner Victoria Rubadiri.
In an interview on the station, Waihiga indicated that he was happy another East African journalist had clinched the award.
"First of all let me say how happy I am to see that the Komla Dumor Award is back in East Africa where it's been for the last 2 years.
"I cannot think of a more deserving journalist than Victoria Rubadiri to be this year's winner. When I heard about the announcement this morning, I just reflected on the story she did this saturday...on article 43 which talks about what rights Kenyans have in the constitution. Those are the people-driven stories that media houses should focus on," he stated.
Citizen TV news anchor Victoria Rubadiri is the 2020 BBC World News Komla Dumor Award winner.
Rubadiri is the sixth winner of the award and will be on a three-month placement at the BBC, in London.
Afterwards, the anchor will be joining BBC News teams across TV, radio and online, where she will learn skills and gain experience.
"I am excited at the prospect of learning new skills at the BBC to be able to connect with audiences locally, regionally and internationally, no matter on which platform the story is being told," Rubadiri stated in an interview with the BBC.
“Komla was a well-rounded journalist whose style, though authoritative, was also compassionate, empathetic and uplifting. His ability to give the facts comprehensively, and yet still be attuned to his audience, was something I admired and a skill I seek to emulate,” Rubadiri added.
Director of BBC World Service Group, Jamie Angus, indicated that judges were impressed by Rubadiri's eloquence and passion for telling African stories.
"We are delighted to have Victoria on board to bring her insights and passion to the BBC," he stated.
The award was created to honour Komla Dumor, a BBC presenter who died aged 41 in 2014.
"Komla had the incredible ability to give stories from the continent global resonance, and also deliver it with familiarity and understanding. We're looking forward to seeing Victoria embody that by bringing her perspectives to life," Angus added.
Rubadiri becomes the second Kenyan to win the award.
In 2018, her colleague Waihiga Mwaura triumphed over other journalists from around Africa to emerge the first male journalist to clinch the Komla Dumor Award.
