The Board of the World Association of Newspapers and News Publishers (WAN-IFRA), meeting in Durban, South Africa on 7th June 2017 ahead of the 69th World News Media Congress, has called on the South African government to ensure an environment that better protects media freedom and the independence of journalists, notably in the face of proposed legislation that threatens a free press.

WIN kick-started the year with a National Gathering and Round Table on gender bias in the media that took place on 16-17 January in Lusaka, Zambia. The event was held in presence of the Zambian Minister of Information and Broadcasting, Hon. Mulenga Kampamba, and generated publicity in local press, radio, and television. The minister’s presence at the meeting in Zambia was not a first time occasion. A similar cooperation with the government has already taken place in Botswana.