Mnangagwa Launches New Media Policy to Combat Misinformation, Boost National Development

President Emmerson Mnangagwa has yesterday launched the Zimbabwe Media Policy, a comprehensive framework designed to navigate the evolving global media landscape, combat misinformation, and align the media sector with the country’s national development agenda.

The launch, held at State House, Harare, showed the government’s commitment to ensuring citizens have access to factual and reliable information in an era of rapid technological change.

In his address, President Mnangagwa highlighted the transformative impact of emerging technologies, particularly Artificial Intelligence, on information gathering, production, and dissemination. 

While acknowledging the opportunities presented by these innovations, he also cautioned against the associated challenges, including accuracy, ethics, information overload, and potential threats to national sovereignty and democracy, especially for the Global South.

“Through the promulgation of the National Media Policy, we are launching today, my Government is strengthening and guaranteeing that our citizens will have access to factual, verified, accurate, and reliable information,” President Mnangagwa stated. 

President Mnangagwa yesterday launched the media policy

He emphasized that this access is crucial for accelerating Zimbabwe’s national development.

The policy is rooted in the philosophy ‘Nyika inovakwa, inotongwa, inonamatigwa nevene vayo/ Ilizwe lakhiwa, libuswe, likhu-le-kelwe ngabanikazi balo,’ which calls for deploying information within the context of Zimbabwe’s unique history, culture, and vision.

Key aspects of the new policy include enhanced regulatory efforts, content and platform accountability, and support for Zimbabwe’s independent content ecosystem.

President Mnangagwa stressed that the policy aims to protect against threats to facts, ethics, diversity, and cultural plurality posed by the global tech infrastructure.

The policy also addresses critical issues such as market dominance, privacy, misinformation, disinformation, and user rights.

The president has also emphasized the importance of protecting users from exploitative practices and promoting digital literacy.