Arabic journalism 'by the region for the region' at Abu Dhabi's new training centre

This article was migrated from an old version of our website in 2025. As a result, it might have some low-quality images or non-functioning links - if there's any issues you'd like to see fixed, get in touch with us at info@journalism.co.uk.

There used to be something here that couldn't be migrated - please contact us at info@journalism.co.uk if you'd like to see this updated!

The Middle East's newest journalism training centre welcomes its first batch of students this week.

With partners including the BBC and Thomson Reuters, twofour54 tadreeb aims to provide a new level of training previously unavailable to journalists and trainees in the region.

Its first offering is a television production course, but the centre aims to offer more than 200 programmes covering all media; editorial as well as commercial elements of being a journalist.

Journalism.co.uk caught up with Wayne Borg, chief operating officer of twofour54, to find out more.

Who will be attending the courses?

[WB] The academy's business model is principally B2B [business to business] and is aimed at existing media and entertainment companies seeking to 'up-skill' and 're-skill' their working professionals across a comprehensive range of media and content industry disciplines.

We are also keen to encourage young Arabs and graduates considering a career in the media industry to enroll in our courses.

Within each of these disciplines there are a number of specialist courses that will enable participants to ensure they are fully conversant with the latest technology as well as techniques. In the field of journalism, for example, there has been tremendous interest in our video journalism courses as the print media adapts to more modern media platforms.

Why is there a need to provide more training for journalists in the region?

Standards vary greatly in the regional media industry. As the region grows in international prominence and an increasing number of global publications launch Middle East editions, so comes the need for a world-class media industry.

We have taken our cue from media organisations and journalists in the region who have consistently expressed a strong desire to access the sort of training solutions that up till now have only been available overseas.

The focus is on developing Arabic media and entertainment content creation by Arabs and for the Arab audience so twofour54 tadreeb's courses respond to market demands and are designed to address specific skill gaps in the region.

How will this benefit Arab-region journalism?

The partnerships with the BBC, Thomson Reuters and the Thomson Foundation will mean that twofour54 can offer a world class training curriculum.

What makes our courses distinctive from any other courses available in the region, is that they are outcome driven, practically focused, vocational training courses, delivered by highly experienced media professionals, that will immediately improve the participants' performance and career opportunities as well as positively impacting on their company’s bottom line.

Our core focus is to provide practical courses that will immediately improve the participant's working performance and career paths while driving the development of world class Arabic content created by the indigenous people of the region.