Twenty years after the Windhoek Declaration on press freedom

What has been <strong>the</strong> state-of-play for African media in
<strong>the</strong> 20 <strong>years</strong> since <strong>the</strong> historic <strong>Windhoek</strong> <strong>Declaration</strong> of
1991 which gave rise to World Press Freedom Day every
3 May? And what can be expected over <strong>the</strong> next decade?
More than 70 commentators illuminate <strong>the</strong> trajectory
in a range of contributions in this book - covering <strong>the</strong>
issues of media freedom, pluralism, independence
and access to information. Journalists’ safety, gender-
sensitive reporting, and <strong>the</strong> role of <strong>the</strong> Internet are
amongst <strong>the</strong> topics covered.
In a nutshell, progress has been made since 1991, but
much remains to be achieved. There’s a grave danger
that <strong>the</strong> momentum of media freedom is slowing and
even reversing in many countries. Meanwhile, <strong>the</strong> rise
of new communications technologies puts pressure on
African journalists to live up to <strong>the</strong>ir ideals more than
ever.
OSISA
Open Society Initiative
for Sou<strong>the</strong>rn Africa