Komla Dumor; One Year Later, What Has Happened to His Legacy?

One year ago, on January 18, 2014, Ghanaian broadcaster, Komla Dumor died in his home in London. It was a shocking event that no one expected. The bright 41 year-old, was considered by many to be the leading light of African broadcasting, and he influenced countless people all over the world.

Newaccra.com is on a mission to become Africa's most trusted personal development magazine, and this dream was heavily influenced by Komla Dumor's famous TED talk. In honour of our hero, we report some of the major happenings, one year after the Boss Player was called to eternity.

1. There is now a foundation in his honor

The Komla Afeke Dumor Memorial foundation was started to promote dialogue on African progress and to do other things. Very importantly, the foundation will also educate young professionals on cardiac health and well-being. Because Komla died of a cardiac condition, it is only right to help possibly prevent other deaths.This foundation is led by Komla's father and siblings.

2. A school has dedicated a centre to him

A private university in Accra, The African University College of Communication,announced the launch of the Komla Dumor Center for Broadcast Journalism. The centre is currently under construction and when it is complete, will serve as the university's main establishment for running broadcasting training programmes. This same school held an event to mark what would have been Komla's 42nd birthday.

3. A street bears KD's name

In the Haatso area of Accra, where Komla's family resides, a street has been named after him. The Municipal Chief Executive of the area, said he hopes the street name will encourage young people in the area to aspire to great heights and put the municipality on higher platforms , just like Komla did. A Government minister also hinted that another street in the Ketu Municipal Assembly in the Volta region might be named after the Boss Player.

4. A radio station newsroom carries his name

The newsroom of Accra based radio station, Starr103.5 FM, is now called the Komla Dumor Newsroom. The radio station is staffed by some high profile media personalities who worked at one point with the Boss Player. They spoke highly of Komla and invited his family to do the honours of unveiling the plaque.

5. Komla Dumor's foundation is online.
The official Facebook page for the celebration of the life of Komla Afeke Dumor as at January 25, 2015 has more than 51 thousand likes. The official foundation website is http://komladumorfoundation.org/. This new site replaces the old one that went live at komla-dumor.com. A series of lectures have been instituted by the foundation in KD's honour. The first edition featured leading minds in Ghanaian journalism discussing various ways to raise the quality bar in the Ghanaian media.

6. There is now a Journalism Scholarship in his name

The BBC has just announced a brand new award for one African journalist who has a flair for telling African stories and a strong ambition to become an excellent journalist. The awards cover travel and immigration costs, payments and a three month learning period at the BBC's high profile training academy. Application opens on Monday January 19th

There you have it. Komla's exploits in a rather short life are still earning him honours even after he has passed to eternity. If we missed anything, kindly add it in the comments below.

May we learn our lessons from this luminary. May we chase excellence and impact people like he did. At the end of our days, may there be hundreds who became better because of our efforts. Few things will make The Boss Player happier than that!

Authors
Eric Kumah & Philip Kofi Ashon
photo credit – sompafm.com, KomlaDumor Foundation and respective sources
See more on Newaccra.com