Namibia Media Sustainability Index (MSI)
March 16, 2012
About the MSI
IREX designed the MSI to measure the strength and viability of any country's media sector. The MSI considers all the factors that contribute to a media system—the quality of journalism, effectiveness of management, the legal environment supporting freedom of the press, and more—to arrive at scores on a scale ranging between 0 and 4. These scores represent the strength of the media sector components and can be analyzed over time to chart progress (or regression) within a country. Additionally, countries or regions may be compared to one another. IREX currently conducts the MSI in 80 countries, and began studying Africa in 2006.
MSI Overview | Africa | Asia | Europe & Eurasia | Middle East & North Africa
Download Complete Namibia Chapter (PDF): 2010 | 2009 | 2008 | 2006/7
MSI Namibia – 2010 Introduction
Overall Country Score: 2.40
Since it gained independence in 1990, Namibia has enjoyed a stable political and economic environment, with free and fair elections dominated throughout the country by the ruling party, the South West African People’s Organization (SWAPO). Economically, the country is tied to South Africa, with a shared currency (the Namibian dollar is pegged one-to-one with the South African Rand) and numerous South African businesses and shops operating in the country. Despite this stability and economic growth, the country remains characterized by an immense disparity between rich and poor, with a minority of the population enjoying a high standard of living but the majority living in poverty.
Perhaps the most dramatic move in recent media developments in the country has been, after many years of discussion, the passing of the Communications Act in 2009. The final tabling and eventual passage of the bill was highly controversial, with allegations of “hidden agendas” by the government, which, despite consulting fairly widely on the bill, slipped in a so-called spy clause at the last minute. This gave government agencies the right to tap into e-mails, SMS messages, or telephone conversations in the interests of “national security” without judicial consent.
In addition, the ruptured state of the public broadcaster, the Namibian Broadcasting Corporation (NBC), continues to cause great concern, with funding shortfalls (leading to regular appeals to the government for further cash injections), a lack of perceived neutrality (especially noticeable during the 2009 election campaign), leadership issues, and excessive turnover. The tenure of acting director General Mathew Gowaseb, for instance, although notable for a general strengthening of professional standards, was short-lived, and he tendered his resignation citing personality clashes with senior members of his staff, who allegedly had connections to the former president, Sam Nujoma.
Unfortunately, his time at NBC was marked by two issues thought by many to degrade freedom of expression. First, two popular phone-in radio programs were dropped. Second, NBC scrapped a carefully crafted formula for coverage of political parties, resulting in zero electioneering on the public broadcaster in the all-important weeks before the election, apart from the generally government-dominated news coverage.
On the positive side, the Editor’s Forum of Namibia grew in strength, drawing members from commercial, community, and public print and electronic media. Another positive move was the establishment of the Office of the Media Ombudsman and appointment of Clement Daniels (a human-rights lawyer) to the role in November 2009. This is an impartial and industry-led office independent of government to deal with complaints about the media.
