Project profile — Ms President

The expected outcomes for this project include: (1) increased leadership positions for women who have participated in the show; and (2) increased effectiveness of civil society actors, notably the media, in promoting and supporting women leadership in their communities, in peacebuilding and in preventing violent extremism.

Results achieved as of the end of the project (December 2020) include: (1) Media Focus Africa screened 26 episodes of the television (TV) show, which attracted an estimated average of 3.5 million viewers per week; (2) broadcasted on Kenya’s main TV channel, the show significantly increased the leadership and influence of the top five Kenyan women contestants. They built a campaign team, campaigned in different parts of Kenya’s capital, and participated in a live televised debate before the final episode where the audience (147,099 people) voluntarily voted for their choice of Ms President using text messages; (3) 67% of women and young women contestants in the reality television series expressed an increase in their self-confidence in public speaking,in their sense of empowerment and in being more effective agents of change in their communities; (4) 597 contestants and audience members (of which 51% women) reported having taken political and civic leadership positions in their community and other counties in Kenya after the end of the series; and (5) after the show production and broadcast, three local civil society organizations used the show to implement community focus group discussions in counties affected by conflict and violence to promote women’s leadership roles in peacebuilding and inclusive governance.