On April 27- 29th, 2025, TAMCODE joined media stakeholders in Tanzania to mark the 32nd years anniversary of World Press Freedom Day. The commemorations came ahead of the official date May 3rd, 2025. The Prime Minister of the United Republic of Tanzania, Hon. Kassim Majaliwa graced the high-level event amid attendance of over 300 -delegates from Tanzania, Zimbabwe, Kenya and Uganda comprising of government officials, heads of media institutions, media owners, journalists’ associations, diplomatic missions, the UN, media development partners, members of academia, media professionals, legal experts, civil society and human rights defenders.
The national conference to mark the WPFD in Tanzania saw media stakeholders engage in various discussions under the theme, ‘The Impact of Artificial Intelligence on Press Freedom and the Media.’ The first day began with a fun run whereas the second day began with remarks from the chair of the organizing committee, Jamii Africa as well as members of the diplomatic corps. During the event, delegates engaged in deep reflection and discussion on how the media fraternity can navigate the impact of AI in the future of journalism, the future of media sustainability in the digital era and monetization for content creators to engage in ethical storytelling and boost their livelihoods.
Other plenary discussions included gender, media and how to break barriers during the digital era, legal and regulatory framework and Parliament’s role in the press freedom, security of journalists, empowering the next generation, the News, Media and the journalist we want, as well as AI for journalism and media innovation. Issues of disinformation in Tanzania, its effects, how it spreads and ways to mitigate it were also discussed, drawing experiences from discussants from neighboring countries of Kenya, Uganda and Zimbabwe. Notably, journalism and elections were well elaborated and discussed to address fake news, disinformation and misinformation. Notably, TAMCODE Executive Director played the role of the rapporteur.