Namibia
In 2020, the Republic of Namibia, situated in Southern Africa, was ranked 23 out of 180 on the World Press Freedom Index (WPFI), an annual ranking of media freedom, making it the highest-ranking country on the continent.
Over the last five years, Namibia has managed to solidify its position as a country where the media operate in a relatively open environment. According to Namibia’s country profile on BBC, “Hage Geingob was voted in as president in the November 2014 elections.” His government helped the country rank 17, the highest in its history, in the following two years. Despite falling a couple of positions afterwards, Namibia remains in the top 25 of the WPFI countries.
The global ranking is published by Reporters Without Borders (RSF), an international non-governmental organization based in Paris, France. According to its website, “RSF defends journalists (both professional and non-professional) who may hold opposing views as long as they are committed to reporting reality as they see it, in an independent manner.”
The WPFI gives information about how much free speech is nurtured or oppressed in a specific region. The list is compiled after conducting online research about each country’s pluralism, media independence, environment and self-censorship, legislative framework, transparency, infrastructure, and journalist abuse.
Despite its top ranking, Namibia’s media face occasional threats. “Namibian journalists and media outlets found themselves under attack in 2019 when their revelations about officials taking bribes in exchange for granting access to Namibia’s fishing grounds resulted in the arrests of two ministers and several businessmen and police officers,” RSF’s website reported.
In the face of such challenges, Namibia’s media landscape remained stable. In 2020, the country scored 77 out of 100 points in the Freedom in the World (FITW) report, an annual survey conducted with the purpose of evaluating the political and civil liberties in 195 countries and 15 territories globally.
The FITW report is compiled by the Freedom House, a non-governmental, not-for-profit organization aiming to ensure the preservation of freedom through democracy. As its website states, “the Freedom House is founded on the core conviction that freedom flourishes in democratic nations where governments are accountable to their people.”
“Namibia’s constitution guarantees media freedom and freedom of expression,” FITW report shows. “In practice, journalists face few legal restrictions and may generally work without risking their personal safety.”
The ruling party, the South West Africa People’s Organization (SWAPO), aims to ensure that individuals feel free to express their personal views on political or other sensitive topics. “In June 2019, members of SWAPO tabled a motion in Parliament calling for the regulation of social media to address perceived abuses, including insults of political leaders,” FITW report shows.
Despite such regulations, the FITW supports WPFI’s findings that the media freedom in the country is still facing new challenges. “The absence of information laws obstructs investigative journalism,” FITW report shows.
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Ilia Dobrev is majoring in Business Administration and minoring in IMC and IS at AUBG. He’s passionate about entrepreneurship, technology, and communication.
