By Thandisizwe Mgudlwa
Is the Media Development and Diversity Agency (MDDA) contributing to the desired transformation and development of South Africa?
Evidence seems to suggest that indeed the programme adopted in 2003 by the South African government is contributing to the nation’s developmental goals.
Since it’s inception the MDDA has sponsored more 200 projects and including current project like 4 Television Stations across the country, 18 radio stations and numerous Community Print and Small Commercial Print projects countrywide.
And as South Africa’s democracy matures it is highly important for under-resourced but developing communities to have access to information and communication tools for them to achieve prosperity.
It is for this reason that news on the Portfolio Committee on Communications of the National Assembly’s adoption of the committee’s recommendation to appoint three candidates to serve on MDDA’s board should be welcomed.
With Joyce Moloi-Moropa, Portfolio Committee Chairperson on Communications asserting: “We view this adoption as affirmation to our position that the three candidates were best among 13 personnel who were interviewed.
“They demonstrated leadership competencies as well as sound knowledge of the media landscape across the country, thereby giving us confidence about their suitability.”
The National Assembly is to now forward the names to The Presidency for appointment.
And the three candidates are Palesa Kadi, Thamsanqa Ntenteni and Jabulane Blose.
Kadi and Ntenteni are recommended to be appointed to serve the full-term of the board, while Blose is recommended to be appointed to serve out the remaining term of a board member who resigned.
“Blose is a person living with disability. The committee is proud to have recommended him in order to mainstream disability at all levels of society.
“We are impressed by his level of knowledge about the media sector. We are very confident that he will discharge his duties with diligence,” Moloi-Moropa added.
Meanwhile, the Media Development and Diversity Agency (MDDA) is a statutory development agency for promoting and ensuring media development and diversity.
It is a partnership between the South African Government and major print and broadcasting companies to assist in, amongst others, developing community and small commercial media in South Africa.
It was established in 2003, in terms of the MDDA Act No. 14 of 2002 and started providing grant funding to projects on 29 January 2004.
In the paper on the merits of the MDDA written by scholar Devan Pillay, it is argued, “Inspired by “extra-market” initiatives to ensure media diversity in social-democratic Northern Europe, the Media Development and Diversity Agency (MDDA) is a path-breaking attempt by a developing country to support the media needs of marginalized communities too poor to be of interest to advertising-driven commercial media.
The study further examines the policy process towards the establishment of the MDDA as a partnership between the state, capital, and civil society within the constraints of South Africa’s re-entry into a global economy that privileges “free market” solutions to developmental problems.
“Under these conditions, do partnerships between the state, the private sector, and civil society facilitate or hinder the achievement of social objectives aimed primarily at uplifting the poor and marginalized? ask Pillay
Copyright 2015 African Journalist
