UNESCO, MISA & media partners launch Southern Africa’s Press Freedom Report

The 3rd edition of the State of Press Freedom in Southern Africa Report was launched during the 2nd Africa Media Convention in Lusaka, Zambia on the 11th of May 2023. The convention provided an opportunity for Government representatives from Zambia, Malawi, Namibia, and Zimbabwe as well as Southern Africa media stakeholders and organisations to review the report.

The Report was produced by the Media Institute of Southern Africa (MISA) with support from the Swedish Embassy, International Media Support (IMS), the Sigrid Rausing Trust and the National Endowment for Democracy.

UNESCO’s support to MISA is part of the multi-stakeholder approach to address crimes against journalists and the issue of impunity.

“UNESCO is pleased to have supported efforts leading to what we now have, the first report of its kind in Africa. The uniqueness of this report is that the report is aligned to SDG 16.10. It gives State parties and other media stakeholders, a tool they can use to collect data on media violations”, said Professor Lidia Arthur Brito, the UNESCO Regional Director during the validation session.

Prof Brito highlighted that any recording of a media violation is one too many as journalists have a critical role to play in the empowerment of citizens through knowledge and information dissemination. Southern Africa still faces media violations that need to be addressed through engagements between Governments and media stakeholders. Journalists need to work in a safe environment and issues of impunity of crimes against journalists need to be addressed for dissemination of accurate information.