ZMC Must Embrace Disruptive Technologies

Permanent Secretary for Ministry of Information, Publicity and Broadcasting Services Nick Mangwana has urged the Zimbabwe Media Commission (ZMC) to embrace disruptive technologies.

Speaking at a Media Breakfast meeting in Harare, Mangwana highlighted that there is need to make use of the disruptive technologies to enhance the national development.

“The ZMC have their role articulated in the Constitution that is on Section 249, allow me the latitude to share at least a discussing level some role, I think on the primary the role of ZMC is to uphold, promote and develop freedom of the media.

“To promote and enforce good practises and ethics in the media, to monitor broadcasting in the public interest and in particular to ensure fairness and diversity of view is broadly representing the Zimbabwe Society.

“I will skip a few and go to say to ensure that the people of Zimbabwe have fair and wide access to information, and I will skip a few again and say to encourage the use and development of all officially recognised languages and finally to say to encourage the adoption of new technologies in the media and the dissemination of information.

He added that ZMC has a Constitutional role to adopt disruptive technology.

“I don’t think this we ever think about it that it is actually the role of the ZMC to embrace new technology and to make sure that it is adopted in Zimbabwe especially in the media sector in the dissemination of Information.

“The traditionally among us would say, but we thought the ZMC should be focused on the Newspapers, Televisions and Radios but no this is coming right from the Constitution that ZMC must embrace the disruptive technologies.

“From the concerns that I have just raised we must be very clear of the responsibility of ZMC in as far as online platforms are concerned, in as far as social media is concerned. ZMC have a role to play on Instagram, Tik Tok. I am not saying they should regulate it or control it those are not my words I just took it from the Constitution to say they should promote the adoption of these technologies,” he said.