Policy and Advocacy

The Eastern Africa Editors Society undertakes policy and advocacy on media freedoms in the region to entrench more democratic rights for journalists, the safety of journalists, and media stakeholders to thrive and fulfill their mandates. It supports member associations by building their capacities, collating expertise, and building solidarity with governments and non-state actors. As an important solidarity-driven institution, it also issues press releases urging governments to protect and enhance media freedoms and journalistic rights to do their work uninhibitedly.

Press Freedoms

A signature role that the society on press freedoms is a twin one; undertakes research on press freedoms in the region, then convenes stakeholders to discuss and learn, and secondly, hosts the regional World Press Freedom Day (WPFD) on May 3rd, bringing together stakeholders to exchange ideas, knowledge and learn. UNESCO is a key partner in WPFD activities. 

Research lies at the heart of how EAES engages on issues affecting freedom of expression, freedom of the media, and access to information in the region. In 2022, research undertaken is informed by the Africa media assessment framework which entails eight assessment areas/indicators that need to be considered to give a holistic picture of the state of media freedom and safety of journalists in Africa. The areas include the legal framework; media pluralism and diversity; journalists’ safety and protection; media independence; internet access and affordability; media (self) regulation; and privacy and confidentiality of online communication. Some of the research done is available in the download section.

In convening WPFD activities, the society has also been called upon to host the Africa convening, like in 2022. In 2021, the society convened the region including Comoros, Madagascar, Seychelles, and Rwanda among others to deliberate and contribute to revising the 30+ Windhoek Declaration Promoting an Independent and Pluralistic African Press. The regional convening led to contributions that were adopted in Windhoek to amend the declaration to align it to the 21st century.

Beyond the two activities, EAES publishes a yearly Eastern Africa journalism review, a publication that discusses press freedom issues in the region. So far, it has done the 2020 and 2021 reviews, also available in the download section. The 2020 publication focused on how the media is coping and adapting to the COVID-19 pandemic while 2021 focused on re-examining media freedom in a changing world guided by the Windhoek declaration.

Media Convenings

EAES also hosts media convenings on happenings in the region that seek to improve the narratives that journalists do to inform audiences. The convenings bring together local experts to provide nuanced dynamics as well as paint regional implications to the issues. For instance, in 2021, EAES hosted two media convenings in Sudan and Ethiopia to impart knowledge on media stakeholders in the region.