On April 30, 2025, JamiiAfrica, in collaboration with the Media Alliance of Zimbabwe, co-hosted the Zimbabwe News Media Investment Indaba in Harare under the theme: “Sustainable Journalism in the Age of AI and Digital Disruption.” The Indaba brought together key stakeholders to address the growing sustainability crisis facing Zimbabwe’s news media sector.
Zimbabwe’s media industry is currently operating within a complex “polycrisis” environment characterized by declining revenues, shrinking audiences, newsroom closures, operational downsizing, and delayed or non-payment of journalists and media practitioners. These challenges are particularly severe among private media institutions, newly licensed house medias, and community radio initiatives, many of which continue to struggle to achieve financial sustainability in an increasingly fragmented digital ecosystem.
Recognizing that these challenges cannot be addressed in isolation, the Media Alliance of Zimbabwe and other stakeholders emphasized the importance of regional collaboration and knowledge exchange. This created an opportunity to engage established regional actors such as JamiiAfrica, which has successfully navigated similar digital transformation and sustainability challenges across East Africa and continues to expand its footprint in countries including Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda, and Zimbabwe.
The Indaba attracted a diverse group of participants, including representatives from the Ministry of Information, Publicity and Broadcasting Services, the Zimbabwe Union of Journalists, the Zimbabwe Media Commission, the Africa Media Convention, Members of Parliament, media houses, and the Content Creators Association of Zimbabwe.
During the discussions, JamiiAfrica shared its expertise in building resilient, community-driven digital platforms capable of fostering trust, encouraging civic participation, and resisting censorship pressures. The organization contributed insights on strengthening digital resilience and platform credibility, ethical and responsible AI adoption within media institutions, protection of digital rights and freedom of expression, and the integration of online engagement with offline community-centered initiatives.
JamiiAfrica also used the platform to position itself as a regional leader in digital public interest infrastructure and democratic participation. Through the Indaba, the organization aims to establish long-term partnerships with both state and non-state actors in Zimbabwe, contribute to conversations on digital policy and press freedom, and identify opportunities to pilot initiatives such as the “Jamii Digital Democracy Hub” and “Stories of Change” within Zimbabwe’s media ecosystem.
For JamiiAfrica, participation in the Indaba aligned directly with its Operational Expansion Strategy, which focuses on building strategic partnerships across Africa to strengthen informed citizenship, digital participation, and access to credible information. JamiiAfrica’s engagement was guided by its broader mission of building inclusive digital communities while supporting resilient and trusted information ecosystems. The organization also sought to transition from ad hoc support initiatives toward structured regional knowledge transfer and long-term ecosystem collaboration.
Overall, the Indaba represented an important milestone in strengthening regional cooperation around media sustainability, digital transformation, and democratic participation in Southern Africa.
