Media
statement: Public
hearings on the MDDA Bill before the Portfolio Committee on Communications
5 March 2002
The public hearings on the Media Development
and Diversity Agency (MDDA) Bill mark a critical stage on the path
towards an agency that will help ensure that the constitutional
rights of freedom of expression and information are enjoyed in practice
by all South Africans.
The debate and discussion will take
place in the context of a broad consensus on the need for such an
agency to help address the legacy of imbalances in access to and
use of the media; and on the fact that the endeavour can succeed
only if founded on a partnership of government and the stakeholders.
The Bill is a product of extensive
consultation over the past three years, as well as much research
and comparative study. The complexity of the media sector has made
the process of consensus-building a long one. The interaction has
been comprehensive, focussing at different times on different stakeholder
constituencies: community media as potential beneficiaries; government
departments; the industry as potential source of funding; and all
stakeholders together in public hearings facilitated by the Portfolio
Committee.
The Bill provides for the establishment
of an independent Agency that is rooted in a partnership between
government, the media industry and the community media sector. It
gives practical expression to a common interest amongst all those
in the media sector in serving a citizenry that is informed, articulate
and engaged in changing their country for the better.
Fundamental to the philosophy of the
MDDA is that it will not involve itself in content. Rather it aims
at overcoming the barriers to media development which have helped
preserve the imbalances that still exist – lack of access to
resources; training; education; literacy; amongst others. By helping
overcome such barriers to media development the MDDA should promote
a climate conducive to greater media diversity.
The MDDA’s primary function will
be to provide and facilitate funding and other support – including
training and capacity-building - to community media that serve the
interests of various marginalised communities throughout the country.
It will also provide some support to small commercial media and
fund research that is relevant to media development and diversity.
The principle of partnership is reflected
in the approach to joint funding of the MDDA by government, media
industry and donors.
The consultation and public hearings
around the Draft Position Paper published in November 2000 led to
some changes with regard to funding. The proposed levy on advertising
expenditure has given way to a voluntary approach. The target was
lowered to R250m over five years or R50m a year.
Appreciating the need to demonstrate
to donors that South Africans have the will and the capacity to
make this initiative succeed, a concerted approach to donors for
funding has been deferred, though the groundwork is being done.
However, with little or no precedent,
government and the media industry have together mobilised funding
to provide a secure foundation for the MDDA to start its work over
the next five years as an independent body. The significance of
the contribution by the media industry is made all the greater by
the current context of a difficult economic period for the media
industry.
What has already been committed by
government and industry – subject to the completion of the
legislative process; the drawing up of guidelines for the operation
of the agency and signing of agreements – takes us beyond R40m
a year.
The resources available should expand
as the operation of the MDDA makes further kinds of contribution
feasible: for example provision of training; and supportive policies
for the placement of advertising by both government and private
sector. Account has not yet been taken of any contribution from
the Universal Service Agency with its new mandate for multi-media
services; nor of potential contributions of donors.
In some instances years have separated
legislation to set up an agency and the start of its work, because
funds were not available. In the case of the MDDA however the funds
are there for it to begin its work by the end of this year, assuming
no unforeseen delays.
The principle of partnership is reflected
also in the composition of the Board. It will be uniquely constituted
to embody the widest range of interests and expertise – but
it is also required by the legislation to act independently of those
interests.
Four seats on the nine-person Board
will be reserved for nominees of the community media, commercial
broadcast media, commercial print media and government, through
GCIS. In order to secure the Board’s independence, the legislation
has provisions that mean that nominees will serve in their individual
capacity, and not on behalf of the constituency that nominated them.
In this context, independence is approached as relating to the conduct
of board members rather than simply to the composition of the board.
The MDDA will have no regulatory powers.
It will therefore have no capacity to encroach on the authority
of the regulatory bodies that do operate in the media sector, such
as ICASA, the Competitions Commission and so on.
Where the legislation refers to "regulations"
these are guidelines that the MDDA will follow in its own operations
and which relate to the assessment of projects for the allocation
of support and to the Agencies annual consultation with the stakeholder
community. The function of these regulations is to give effect to
the legislation within the context of the policies informing the
Position Paper.
In the same spirit, though the legislation
provides for the Board to make recommendations for promoting media
development and diversity, these would not be binding on stakeholders.
However as the considered opinion of such a body such reports will
carry great weight.
To the extent that such guidelines
or regulations are required to give effect to the legislation within
the framework of the Position Paper, they represent work that the
executive must complete; to the extent that they need to be informed
by engagement with the task of meeting needs for media development
and diversity, they are a matter for the Board as the operational
entity.
Hence the Bill provides for a joint
determination, and for the regulations to be drawn up by "the
Minister in consultation with the Board", implying full agreement
between the two. The understanding is that regulations would be
drawn up by the Board for approval by the Minister before being
promulgated. In the interests of clarity some rewording of the legislation
may be appropriate.
Whatever is decided, for the MDDA to
become an operational agency it will need guidelines derived by
the legislation and informed by the polices outlined in the Position
Paper. The elaboration of those regulations is something that would
need to involve stakeholders.
Once the legislation is passed by Parliament
nominations for the Board will be called for, and it is envisaged
that the MDDA will be operational towards the end of 2002.
Enquiries: Devan Pillay 084 556
2131
5 March 2002
Issued by GCIS
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