CIPR International passes the 1,000 member mark, celebrates milestone at first meeting for 2024

CIPR International is pleased to announce that it has reached 1016 members, making it one of the largest sectoral groups of the Chartered Institute of Public Relations, where it represents almost one tenth of the total membership. This includes 16 new members who have joined in 2024.

“I am delighted to say we have just passed the milestone of having more than 1,000 members, and we are seeing an increasing number of members from overseas. We are committed to supporting our members by facilitating understanding of cultural differences, and building relations with other countries,” says Samantha Seewoosurrun, Chair of the CIPR International Committee for 2024, who is based in Mauritius.

“Indeed, the international committee is the most diverse it has ever been, with members from the regions of APAC; the Caribbean, Middle East and Europe; and in Africa we have members from Nigeria, Angola, Kenya, Ghana, Botswana and Mauritius,” adds Taazima Kala-Essack, Vice Chair and EDI Champion of the CIPR International Committee for 2024, who is based in Botswana.

“It is also exciting to note that Nigeria is home to almost 50 members – which makes it the largest country for the CIPR International outside of the United Kingdom and showcases the immense potential of Africa in contributing to international PR efforts under the aegis of the CIPR International group,” she concludes.

The first meeting of the CIPR International Committee for 2024 was held on 25 January 2024, and members celebrated this milestone by committing to hold more events and activities for members in different regions across the various months of the year.

“An important aspect of our outreach is helping members benchmark, share and learn from best practice through webinars and other activities. Our first regional webinar for this year will be held under the theme ‘Doing PR in Asia’ on 21 February, which is open to both members and non-members,” concludes Samantha.

CIPR International’s committee for 2024 was elected at its AGM held on 19 September 2023, during which Samantha Seewoosurrun was re-elected as Chair and the current Secretary Taazima Kala-Essack was elected as Vice Chair and EDI Champion. Nishika Bajaj was also elected as the new Secretary and Stuart Graham remains as Treasurer. The number of members recorded at the time of the AGM was 978, which already compared favourably with the 859 members recorded at the AGM held just a year ago.