BBC to hire 45 employees from ethnic minorities by 2011

London, Feb.28 : A drive to recruit from ethnic minority groups in an attempt to counter criticism of a lack of diversity has been launched by the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC).

According to The Telegraph, the BBC has announced that 90 employees will join a mentoring programme over the next three years, and that 50 percent of them will be from ethnic minorities, 18 will be disabled and the remaining 27 posts will be open to anyone.

At present, just 4.4 per cent of BBC managers are from ethnic minorities, far below its target of seven per cent, set by Greg Dyke, the former director general who described the corporation as "hideously white".

The BBC has been criticised in recent months for failing to represent Britain's different cultures by public figures including Lenny Henry, the comedian.

Samir Shah, the former head of current affairs, said previous BBC efforts to employ black and Asian managers had been "dire".

ANI