CNN International revamps and rebrands African Voices to African Voices Changemakers; adds Nigeria's Arit Okpo as new presenter.

CNN International (DStv 401) is revamping and rebranding its longrunning African coverage magazine show African Voices to African Voices Changemakers and adding the Nigerian Arit Okpo as new presenter from 9 August 2019.

The format of African Voices Changemakers is also changing and will now focus on profiling and interviewing so-called "changemakers" within different spheres of influence across the African continent, ranging from entertainers and creatives, to athletes and ordinary members of the public trying to make a difference and impacting their communities in various ways.

Arit Okpo is a Nigerian presenter who previously produced and presented content for the EbonyLife TV channel.

"We look forward to this new era of African Voices and its TV and digital programming that will raise the profile of the continent’s changemakers amongst our international audience," says Zara Driss, account director for CNN International's commercial division, in a statement.

CNN International snaps up Eleni Giokos as African business correspondent; will report on news and business, work across CNN's Africa programmes.

In a hiring coup, CNN International (DStv 401) has appointed the wanderlust reporter and anchor Eleni Giokos as an African business correspondent based in the news network's Johannesburg bureau.

Eleni Giokos who already did her first on-air interview for CNN Marketplace Africa on Friday joins CNN International after Bloomberg Television downsized this year and quietly shuttered its dedicated Africa business coverage.

Eleni Giokos joined Bloomberg TV Africa from eNCA (DStv 403) exactly two years ago as senior anchor and financial journalist anchoring two programmes for the channel just as she was about to anchor a new business show on eNCA. Before eNCA she anchored on and was a business reporter for CNBC Africa (DStv 410).

Eleni Giokos' addition to CNN International's Africa team bolsters the already formidable, and phenomenal, line-up of on-air talent of the TV news channel.

Eleni Giokos is now part of the CNN International Africa group that includes names like the extremely knowledgeable and experienced Robyn Kriel who also left eNCA earlier this year to join CNN International, David McKenzie who returned to Africa from covering China for CNN International a few month ago, and Soni Methu coming into her own as the presenter of the weekly Inside Africa magazine show.

No longer based in South Africa, but anchoring daily for CNN International is the excellent Robyn Curnow, hailing from South Africa.

According to CNN International, Eleni Giokos, who has an honours degree in journalism and media studies from the University of Witwatersrand, will take on a range of responsibilities for the network.

Besides reporting on news and business stories, Eleni Giokos will work across CNN International's African feature programmes, including Marketplace Africa and African Voices.

"Eleni is an enormously talented and versatile broadcaster," says Mike McCarthy, the senior vice president for programming at CNN International.

"She has interviewed world leaders, covered major breaking news stories, and presented network feature programmes. Her appointment underlines our commitment to African stories and African audiences. We're delighted to have her here at CNN."

Weekly African shows African Voices and CNN Marketplace Africa on CNN International both changing with a new on-air look, new focus.

CNN International (DStv 401) is overhauling its weekly Africa-focused shows CNN Marketplace Africa and Africa Voices.

The British-Nigerian CNN anchor Zain Asher is now the new presenter of the weekly CNN Marketplace Africa on CNN International, the show profiling leading business people and entrepreneurs and various business ventures across the continent.

African Voices on CNN International will be changing from 22 May.

African Voices, with a new look, will now focus on uncovering some of Africa's "most dazzling trendsetters, creating their own subcultures in areas such as travel, fashion, art, music, technology and architecture".

CNN International says African Voices will take CNN viewers "on a surprising journey through multiple cities and countries to showcase modern, contemporary Africa".

Personalities now featured on African Voices will "be creative, vibrant and influential on social media".

"These changes to CNN's Africa output reflect the dynamic and seismic change taking place on the continent today," says Ellana Lee, the senior vice president at CNN International.

"By bringing Zain Asher on board and completely refreshing two of our most-loved business and culture features shows we aim to uncover even more rich, vibrant and powerful stories and trends about modern Africa."

Both CNN Marketplace Africa and African Voices get a new look with new graphics but remain in their established weekly time slots on CNN International.

Besides CNN Marketplace Africa and African Voices, CNN International has the weekly Inside Africa, now in its 16th year and now presented by Soni Methu and the weekly segment African Start-Up.