Sure Kenya might have its fair share of problems. But it has produced talents that have left their mark in the world.
Kenya has seen television anchors like Edith Kimani, Jeff Koinange and Larry Madowo do exploits in other media houses across the world. Also making the list of Kenyan anchors who have gone international is Sky News anchor, Kimberley Leonard.
Based in London, United Kingdom, Kimberley boasts over 20 years of international experience, working as an anchor, reporter, and producer for some of the world’s leading news channels. Currently, she is the lead world news presenter at Sky News.
She was born and bred in Kenya. In Nairobi, she started her career working on the radio.
According to her LinkedIn profile, she then moved to the United Arab Emirates where she worked as a reporter for Dubai One‘s nightly news for over seven years. Thereafter, she relocated to Qatar where she got a position at Al Jazeera English, based in Doha.
During her time in Dubai, Kimberley worked as a reporter and anchor on the business desk, where she cultivated an interest in the hotel sector. After Qatar, she moved to the United Kingdom in 2015.
It was in the English capital that she joined Sky News, taking up the following shows Sky Midnight News, Sky News Sunrise, Live at Five and Press Preview’. Her job comes with its share of demands since she spends over six hours working on Live TV.
Kimberley reported on events that included the Dusit D2 terrorist attack in Kenya, the ejection of Robert Mugabe from power in Zimbabwe, the historic summit between South Korea President Moon Jae-in and his North Korea counterpart, Kim Jong Un, the Grenfell Tower disaster in London and the Manchester bombing.
She has also been reported live from scenes of plane crashes, covered economic forums and has interviewed the likes of billionaire Richard Branson, astronaut Buzz Aldrin, Chris Froome, Terry O’Neill to name a few.
Kimberley has moderated numerous conferences, most recently the UN-Habitat annual meeting in Kuala Lumpur and The Africa Hotel Investment Forum in Nairobi. Her moderation work has been varied and includes conferences on aviation, ecology, and insurance.
She grew up at Wilson Airport in Nairobi, flying for countless hours with her father (a pilot) across the country. It was there that she fell in love with aeroplanes.
During her stay at the UAE, she turned her passion into a career, covering various aspects of the aviation industry. Other than English, Kimberley bears a fluency in Kiswahili as well as Spanish and French.
In Kenya, she attended Hillcrest School from 1994 to 1998. The media personality proceeded to the University of Cape Town to study film and media.
Kimberley also holds a master’s in international journalism from the University of Westminister.
