A baobab has fallen – RIP to legendary Africanist and journalist Nick Kotch
Nick Kotch, a towering figure in African journalism, has died aged 72 in London.
A graduate of Oxford University, Nick Kotch had many postings over the decades with Reuters, mostly in Africa – Ivory Coast, Nigeria, Kenya and South Africa.
South African readers may recall his exquisite and piercing prose from his time in Johannesburg, where he was Reuters' Africa Bureau Chief from 2001 to 2004. He subsequently worked for Business Day as Africa Editor and his work also appeared in publications such as National Geographic.
'They are tough editors at National Geographic,' Nick once told me. 'If you make an error, you will be shot at dawn.'
Nick could be a tough editor himself – I know because he was my boss from 2001 to 2004 – but he was also generous and fair, inspiring fierce loyalty among his team.
The formidable talent pool that he recruited and mentored in his Reuters days included the likes of Michela Wrong, whose books are must-reads for anyone with an interest in the continent.
I certainly learnt a lot from Nick over the years as both a colleague and a friend. He wrote like a dream; his concise and penetrating points flowing along in a lyrical stream.
Accolades have poured in since his passing.
Cris Chinaka, the former Reuters Bureau Chief in Harare, said Nick always had his back as Zimbabwe lurched from crisis to crisis, and reporting on the unfolding saga became increasingly daunting and dangerous.
'Nick had complete faith in the Zimbabwe team in covering what was mostly a very difficult political story during President Robert Mugabe's long reign,' Chinaka said.
'Nick regularly checked in on the team to discuss safety and security, welfare issues and news coverage plans. He deferred decision-making and the tone of the Zimbabwe story to my judgement. 'Cris, this is your story, you know it better. We are here to back you up,' he said routinely, in what I came to treat as his signature tune.'
Allan Seccombe, who worked with Nick at both Reuters and Business Day in Johannesburg, recalled his commitment to fostering young talent.
'He was massively supportive in advising, assisting and making moves of promising young journalists to foreign bureaus or desks. He was an absolute mensch and a bloody good journalist.'
His passion and commitment to Africa and African journalism burnt brightly.
David Smith, a Johannesburg-based Canadian and good friend of Nick's who works on media projects in Africa, said: 'Nick was a journalist who was constantly giving back to the profession. I'd bump into him all over the place over the years, from newsrooms in Nigeria, where he'd be teaching young cadets the art of telling the story, to workshops in Johannesburg advising NGOs on how to strengthen writing skills at community radio stations. Nick was truly A Good Man in Africa. I miss him.'
Nick was a noted Africanist who often felt that reporting on the continent failed to capture its vibrancy and complexity.
'Nick was a talented journalist and Africanist who advocated better and more honest coverage of the continent in all its complexities,' his beloved wife Véronique Tadjo, an Ivorian novelist and poet, wrote on Facebook when she announced his death.
'We met in Abidjan and married in London in 1985 … We travelled through Africa and lived in Nigeria, Kenya, Ivory Coast and South Africa with our two boys, Larry and Matteo. Our life has been quite an adventure. From country to country, we've learnt a lot about the world and about ourselves, and forged strong friendships wherever we've been.'
Nick was a lot of fun to be around, but he did not suffer fools at work or snobbery at play.
'I arrived at Nick's house in Joburg for a party he was throwing. When I greeted him, I could see he was fuming. I asked him why. He said Tito Mboweni, then still the SA Reserve Bank Governor, had just arrived,' Daily Maverick's foreign affairs correspondent Peter Fabricius recalled.
'Nick had offered him a drink and he said whisky. Nick gave him a blend of some sort, maybe J&B, and he said no thanks, he only drinks single malt. Nick told me that his father-in-law had been a Cabinet minister in Cote d'Ivoire and J&B had always been good enough for him!'
Nick had an earthy mannerism and Bohemian side that would reveal itself on a Friday night when he would have a few tokes with drink in hand.
I had many great chats with Nick over the years. He was a fantastic conversationalist, animated by his curious nature and love of Africa. He and Véronique were gracious hosts, their Joburg house often brimming with well-fed guests who had no complaints about the adult beverages served.
My wife and I arrived early at one of those social events during the festive Christmas season and I volunteered to braai up some appetisers. But they had a problematic back door and all of the other doors – Joburg being Joburg – were locked.
I closed the back door by mistake, locking us all out of the house – which meant that the rest of the expected guests would also be locked out and the appetisers would only go so far.
One of his boys eventually found a solution: breaking the door window with a brick to reach the handle! The Kotch household was never dull.
Born in Hammersmith, Nick was an ardent Fulham supporter and he was very attached to Cornwall, where the family had a rustic get-away home.
He was devoted to Véronique, and sons Larry and Matteo. I took the boys fly-fishing once, and Nick was thrilled when we returned and one of them had actually landed a trout on fly. I was also thrilled – he was after all my boss at the time!
Nick and the family loved Johannesburg, but during the Zuma years his optimism for South Africa waned. The 'lost Zuma years' were not lost on Nick and, by 2014, the family made the difficult decision to relocate back to London.
I last saw Nick 10 years ago this month when I was passing through London. I had an enjoyable meal with him and Véronique at an Iranian restaurant, and afterward Nick and I had some whiskies – not single malt – at a pub near their home in Notting Hill. He was in his usual fine form – charming, witty and erudite. He was good company and a good man.
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