Despite some improvements in media freedom across Southern Africa, most countries in the region continue to be classified as problematic and difficult, according to the latest Reporters Without Borders World Press Freedom Index report.
South Africa and Namibia remain the leading lights in the region, ranked 21st and 23rd, respectively, out of 180 ranked countries.
Most countries in the region recorded modest improvements, notably Lesotho and Botswana.
The 2026 index shows that Lesotho was ranked 89, up from 107 last year, while Botswana improved from 81st to 63rd.
At the other end of the scale, Tanzania fell from 95th to 117th. Zimbabwe also fell from 106th to 124th.
Mozambique and Zimbabwe, the report says, continue to struggle with “legal indicator” collapses.
With media viability at a tipping point, Southern Africa performs poorly under the “economic context” indicator.
As global platforms suck up advertising revenue, local independent outlets are dying, leaving a vacuum that is being filled by state-funded propaganda or by predatory economic actors who buy media houses to protect their own interests.
There is a growing and alarming misuse of cybersecurity and counter-terrorism laws, which are being weaponised to monitor journalists’ communications and to compel the disclosure of sources under the guise of state secrets.
For the first time, the “sociocultural indicator” recorded a decline in Southern Africa.
The World Press Freedom Index highlights the rise in coordinated online harassment, particularly against female journalists.
In Zimbabwe and South Africa, political party internet armies are used to discredit reporters before they even publish, creating a culture of fear that is not reflected in jail statistics but effectively silences critical voices.
“We must guard media freedom jealously, because as the 2026 Index shows, once the legal framework to protect journalists is dismantled, the slide into the red zone is swift and brutal,” MISA Regional Director Dr Tabani Moyo said.
MISA Regional Communique
