Mohamed Mahmud, a former Citizen TV reporter, has been appointed as a Senior Communications Advisor to the newly elected President of Somalia Hassan Sheikh Mohamud.
Mahmud announced that he will assume his new role in the coming weeks under President Hassan who succeeded the former head of state, Mohamed Abdullahi Farmajo.
Somali conducted its election on May 15, after a final vote that was taken by the Members of Parliament owing to security concerns over holding a countrywide election.
Mahmud will play a critical role in shaping President Hassan's legacy through planning and executing all of the communications activities.
The former Citizen TV reporter is poised to succeed in the role as he is a seasoned communication expert renowned for making firm judgments coupled with his organisational and analytical abilities.
Mahmud will also assist with writing speeches, meeting agendas, talking points, presentations, and compiling reports for President Hassan.
The former media personality established himself in the journalism field at an early age while studying at Muthambi Boys High School in Chogoria, Tharaka-Nithi County.
He then joined the crew of the popular Citizen TV drama series Tahidi High in 2008 as a production assistant.
After high school, he joined the Multimedia University of Kenya then referred to as the Kenya College of Communications Technology (KCCT). He later sought an internship at Citizen TV in January 2010.
Four months later, Citizen TV hired him as a full-time Swahili reporter.
"I used to shoot some of my stories and edit them myself. I could report in both English and Kiswahili. When the three months of internship ended, I was retained as a Swahili reporter," Mahmud told Kenyans.co.ke in a past interview.
He also had a short stint at KTN where he worked at the investigative desk from 2012.
After leaving KTN, Mahmud took on freelancing assignments around the world reporting for international media houses including France 24, Voice of America (VOA), TRT World, Press TV, and TVC News Lagos.
In 2018, he got an offer from Switch TV as the assignment editor. His stint at Switch ended prematurely when the company restructured in 2019.
With over 10 years of experience, Mahmud decided to venture into the media business.
In 2019, months after being rendered jobless, Mahmud founded Movid Media company which deals with Brand Visibility in Somalia.
Before his appointment as a Senior Communications Advisor to the President of Somalia Hassan, Mahmud helped broadcasting houses shoot documentaries, edit news, and produce feature stories in the Horn of Africa.
