Journalism educators in Zimbabwe form a new network

The event brought together eleven journalism and media training institutions from Zimbabwe, ten of whom were present at the event held at Great Zimbabwe University (GZU) in Masvingo. The purpose of ZIJEN is to connect the universities in Zimbabwe that offer Journalism and Media Studies and to create a community of journalism educators to discuss issues related to this profession, such as pedagogical methods, curriculum development and new technology. The long term goal is to strengthen journalism in a rapidly changing media landscape.

“For a long time we were guilty of allowing ourselves to take a back bench when our voices were critically needed in shaping policies, frameworks and laws for our journalism fraternity. This (launch) is therefore a statement of intent towards a more all-round educator who discharges duties in the classroom and remains engaged in the broad environment through engagement with other stakeholders, with the aim of ensuring that the journalism ecosystem remains competitive,” said the founding president of ZIJEN at the launch event, Golden Maunganidze, lecturer at GZU.

The launch had an extensive programme, with solidarity messages from journalism scholars across the continent and speeches by media stakeholders, including the Vice Chancellor at GZU, Professor Rungano Zvobgo, and the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Information, Publicity and Broadcasting Services, Mr Nick Mangwana.

The creation of ZIJEN was spearheaded by the three institutions which Fojo Media Institute has partnered as part of the Media Nexus Programme in Zimbabwe. These three institutions – Great Zimbabwe University, National University of Science and Technology and the Harare Polytechnic – have signed memorandums of understanding with Fojo to increase practical aspects of journalism education, close the gap between the classroom and the newsroom, and to hold trainings for mid-career journalists. The programme will run until May 2025 and is funded by the Embassy of Sweden in Zimbabwe.

Inspired by their attendance at AJEN’s (African Journalism Education Network) roundtable in Kigali 2023, the idea to form ZIJEN was birthed soon after they returned back home. AJEN itself was also supported by Fojo, in partnership with Wits Centre for Journalism.