The Untapped Potential of Regional Cooperation for Media Reform in Southern Africa

"Regional approaches - where advocates from different countries come together to create platforms for collective action rooted in local demands - can be a successful way to address the myriad challenges faced by independent news media in Southern Africa."

At a time of growing challenges to the media sector, this report looks at regional cooperation as a tool for dealing with the complex and highly fragmented media sector reform agenda in Southern Africa. Published by the Center for International Media Assistance (CIMA), it examines lessons learned from previous collaborative efforts in the region and the potential benefits of and challenges to this approach to media development. The report also identifies a set of best practices and makes a series of recommendations about how such cooperation can be structured.

As explained in the report, historically, one of the most influential media organisations in the region was the Media Institute of Southern Africa (MISA), which emerged from the 1991 Windhoek Declaration and advocated for media freedoms through a robust regional network. With the closure of the regional office and subsequent fragmentation of country offices, MISA was no longer able to operate as a strong regional network. The need to fill this vacuum is, however, imperative for media in the region: "Increasing attacks on independent journalism, the co-option of media outlets by political and economic interests, and the growing problem of disinformation is compromising the viability of independent media in the region. The strong foundation of regional cooperation in Southern Africa that began at Windhoek has also suffered."

The report is based on consultative research with representatives from a variety of independent media advocacy organisations and self-regulatory institutions from the region. In particular, it seeks to answer the following questions:

• How can a coalition of media organisations, civil society actors, advocacy platforms, and funders better enable a coherent, impactful, and sustainable regional response to the challenges facing independent media in Southern Africa?
• What priority areas are most conducive to regional cooperation?
• What can be learned from prior regional efforts or successful cooperation in other regions about how best to mobilise and support such cooperation?

The research shows that there remains strong enthusiasm among media actors in Southern Africa to reignite a regional network. "Stakeholders in countries across Southern Africa agree that a regional network or coalition could provide Southern African organizations with a stronger voice and a larger regional presence than they currently have. Such a platform would serve to amplify the collective efforts of different groups by fostering greater cooperation with civil society. Such coalitions can help organizations better mobilize against repression in their own countries, facilitate the use of international legal instruments and mechanisms for protection, and augment advocacy work. A coalition or network could break down the silos that currently constrain many organizations and, critically, make it more difficult for governments to ignore or dismiss their efforts."

Despite the clear potential and enthusiasm for a new regional network, research participants raised a number of ongoing challenges and debates that have stymied efforts for more formal cooperation. These include: financial and logistical challenges; ongoing operational questions and disagreements about network organisation; unclear leverage or entry points with regional/international bodies such as the Southern African Development Community (SADC), and lack of clarity on approaches and goals.

Despite these challenges, there are already several examples of successful collaborations in the region and further afield on the continent that can serve as guidance and inspiration. These include a number of South African National Editors' Forum (SANEF)-initiated collaborations and the Media Foundation for West Africa's (MFWA's) engagement with Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), the primary intergovernmental body in West Africa. The report makes the point that these collaborations were successful because they a) were issue driven, b) involved several stakeholders and were organised around a clear purpose, and c) tapped into windows of opportunity at a regional level.

In conclusion, the report cites three broad recommendations for progressing a regional coalition that emerged through the consultative research process:

1. Identify assets and emerging priorities: This would entail profiling the organisations currently working in the region and identifying the unique strengths and contributions that each could make to the network.
2. Develop an efficient organisational structure: A secretariat or convener would need to be established. The report recommends that this be held by an organisation with sufficient credibility in the region to ensure widespread support and that the secretariat be lean and agile rather than overly bureaucratic and centralised.
3. Engage a wide network of stakeholders and citizens: The coalition would be most successful if it included a wide range of stakeholders and had the support of citizens in the region. To do this, a regular forum could be hosted with attendees from the coalition and other regional and international stakeholders, including government officials, funders, and academics, to communicate the coalition's activities to the public and get further input on citizen demands and priorities for the media sector.