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| From left Oesti Tsoana, Salome Kitomary and Golden Maunganidze in blue |
TellZim
Reporter
HARARE
– Media Institute of Southern Africa (Misa) Zimbabwe’s national chairperson
Golden Maunganidze was elected to chair the Misa SADC regional chapter at an
election held in Harare over the weekend.
Maunganidze was
unanimously voted to be the new chairperson of the MISA Regional Governing Council
(RGC), taking over from Helen Mwale, the MISA Zambia former chairperson.
He will be deputized by Oesti Tsoana, who is MISA
Lesotho chairperson, while MISA Tanzania chairperson Salome Kitomary was
elected treasurer of the RGC.
In his acceptance speech, Maunganidze said MISA has
the opportunity to reconstruct itself into a competitive institution that is
renowned in shaping the course of expression, access to information and media
freedom in the world.
“This is a golden opportunity for MISA to define and
craft blue ocean strategies that consolidate its leadership position and
expertise on issues pertaining to free expression, access to information and
media freedom.
“We have an opportunity to sustain the
reconstruction of a competitive institution that stands tall among others in
shaping the course of expression, access to information and media freedom in
the SADC region continentally and globally,” said Maunganidze.
The meeting, which was held on the sidelines of the
Regional Multi-stakeholder Internet Governance Forum on the same day in Harare
also saw the RGC unanimously resolving that the MISA regional secretariat moves
to Zimbabwe in line with the strategic objectives of the organization.
Speaking on the same event, MISA Zimbabwe national
director Tabani Moyo said the move will be a huge task on the shoulders of MISA
Zimbabwe, it was an expression of unity of purpose among the chapters on the
need for registering sustainable impact through MISA’s interventions.
“All the chapters have a renewed sense of ownership,
belief and commitment to the network, whose footprints on campaigns on
expression, access to information and media freedom remain indelible in the region,”
Moyo said.
The MISA regional office closed in 2015 and since
the chapters had been organizing themselves to better lobby and advocacy
efforts.
