… a Young African Leaders’ Study Tour 2023
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Czech Republic has selected Ghanaian Marketing Communications professional, brand, talent and stakeholder relationship management specialist, Jonathan Christopher Koney, for the Young African Leaders’ Study Tour in the Czech Republic, dubbed Cool Czechia 2023.
Known widely as Chris Koney in the African Media and Creative Arts space, he has joined several thought leaders from across the African continent for the study programme which began on July 26 and ends on August 3, 2023 in two Czech cities – Prague and Telč.
The programme includes sessions at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Czech Republic, under the supervision of directors of selected departments, Office of the President of the Czech Republic, meeting with the Speaker of the Parliament of the Czech Republic as well as a tour of the Chamber of Deputies, which has 200 elected members for four years.
The Editor-in-chief of ČRo Plus, Josef Pazderka, will be hosting the participants at the Czech Public Radio (ČRo). There will be discussion with prominent figures from the non-governmental organisation world on the non-profit sector and the role of civil society at People in Need, a Czech non-governmental, non-profit organisation active all over the world. In addition, there will be guided tours in both cities – Prague and Telč.
Chris Koney has transitioned from a full-time journalist into a Marketing Communications professional and has rebranded his image to reflect the output of his products. From serving as Media Officer for talent hunt shows to spearheading communications for state-funded initiatives, Chris has made tremendous impact in the last 10 years within Africa’s corporate communications space.
Currently, Chris Koney works with Ghana’s leading Policy and Development Bank, the Ghana Export–Import Bank (GEXIM) as Assistant Manager, Corporate Affairs/International Cooperation and a columnist with the Business & Financial Times newspaper.
In 2020, Chris was a panellist for the Global Discussion on Emancipation Day, organised by the Commonwealth Society of Canada; and in 2019, the City of Toronto extolled him for excellence achieved in his fields of endeavour, leadership and devotion to others, which are contributions that serve to strengthen the community.
Chris was selected by the Netherlands and U.S. Governments for the 2019 Global Entrepreneurship Summit (GES) in The Hague, during which he participated in a one-week Press Visitors Programme for selected media and communications professionals around the world.
He participated in a Turkish Airlines Press Trip to Istanbul in 2018, had first-hand experience of the Turkish Airlines Aviation Academy, and toured the Istanbul Airport before it was opened to flights. Also in 2018, Chris served as a Foreign Observer, monitoring the 2018 Turkish General Election.
In 2017, he was announced as Ghana’s representative for the Environmental Protection & Sustainable Development (Tourism) Programme in Berlin, organised by GIZ Berlin and the German Federal Foreign.
