Reality TV show, Got Talent which has been touted to be the world’s most successful reality TV franchise is scheduled to premiere in East Africa next month with Kenya being the host.

Famous shows under the franchise include Britain Got Talent and America Got Talent. The East African version of the show will be known as East Africa Got Talent.

The main sponsors of the show will be Clouds Media International supported by Safaricom PLC and the Kenya Film Classification Board (KFCB).

The launch took place at a Nairobi hotel yesterday.

During the launch, ICT Cabinet Secretary Joe Mucheru said the Government will continue to support the creative industries as a source of potential economic growth in Africa, adding that talent search show will give Kenyan youth an opportunity to display various talents in diverse fields and expose them to international arts market.

In a speech read on his behalf by the ICT Principal Secretary Jerome Ochieng, the CS said that governments across Africa should now come together and start considering non-traditional strategies such as creative arts in their national development plans to conquer the high rates of unemployment in the continent.

“A film industry that embraces its country’s youth as a readily available resource for film making places the country on the global map as a key tourism and filming destination and creates employment for youth in the creative industry,” he added.

Also present during the event was Cabinet Secretary for Sports and Heritage Amina Mohammed, KFCB CEO Dr Ezekiel Mutua, CEO Clouds Media International Joseph Kusaga, Safaricom’s Chief Customer Officer Sylvia Mulinge and renowned Ugandan comedian Ann Kansiime who will also be among the show hosts.

By David Mukara