Reporters Without Borders recently released their latest report focusing on journalists’ safety around the world, which also ranks the press freedom of 180 countries. Journalists across Africa face dangerous threats just for doing their jobs, such as torture, police brutality, kidnapping and murder.
The report paints a bleak picture about journalists’ safety and media across the continent, with Eritrea being ranked the worst at 180. Currently there are 10 journalists and four media workers detained in the country. According to the report, many of those detained are denied access to their families or lawyers. Notably, Swedish-Eritrean journalist, Dawit Isaak, has been held in prison since 2001 without a formal trial or charges brought against him.
The report also highlights that during elections in some countries, “Politicians have tried to use the media as instruments for exercising influence and imposing authority”. Politicians have gone to great lengths to create their own media outlets, as was seen in Senegal, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), and Nigeria. The DRC and Nigeria held their elections in 2023, while Senegal’s took place in March 2024.
We have compiled a list of African countries going to the polls this year, and take a look at the risks journalists face in each according to the Reporters Without Borders report.
- Senegal
Date: 24 March 2024
President: Bassirou Diomaye Faye (44 years old and incumbent president)
Number of Political Parties: 19 registered parties
Faye won the elections with 54% of the vote, 10 days after he was freed from prison. About 7.3 million people voted in the elections, which were scheduled for February 25 but due to a last-minute postponement moved to March. The postponement triggered unrest, which left four people dead.
Senegal ranks 94th in the World Press Freedom Index 2024, and according to Reporters without Borders, “Arrests and detention of media personnel in connection with political unrest have become frequent. An increase in both arrests and violence (verbal and physical threats) against journalists was seen in 2022 and at least ten journalists were arrested in 2023.
“All were granted a provisional release or amnesty,” reads the report. “The sources of the growing physical threats to both local and international journalists include the police and political actors. The targets have included the journalists’ training institute, CESTI, which was attacked by demonstrators in June 2023.”
- Togo
Date: 20 April 2024
Current President: Faure Essozimna Gnassingbe (57 years old and has served since 2005)
Number of Political Parties: 36 registered parties
The Togolese Republic is a multi-party country. The Union for the Republic (UNIR) is the ruling party with 59 seats, followed by the Union of Forces for Change (UFC) with seven seats. Gnassingbe’s family has controlled Togo’s presidency since the 1960s.
According to Reporters Without Borders, “Journalists in Togo are often pressured or offered benefits to toe the government line and safety remains a concern for journalists who investigate corruption or the government’s actions.” Journalists are concerned about threats of media outlet closure or suspension from government. The country ranks 113 on the World Press Freedom Index 2024.
- Chad
Date: 6 May 2024
Current President: Mahamat Idriss Deby Itno (40 years old and has served since 2021 after his father, Idriss Deby, died)
Number of Political Parties: 18 registered parties
The president is elected using a two system, a majority is required to prevent a second round of voting.
The country’s constitutional council has confirmed Mahamat Idriss Deby as the winner for the elections by 61% of the vote. In December 2023, there was a constitutional referendum following the death of the President, Idriss Deby. Chad is a dominant party country with the Patriotic Salvation Movement (MPS) having been in power since 1990. Deby’s father took over in a coup in the early 1990s.
Ahead of the elections, Reporters Without Borders reported that authorities in Chad suspended a newspaper and restricted privately owned media from covering President Deby’s campaign rally. Journalists’ lives are under threat. A community radio journalist was shot dead in March, and in a separate incident, two journalists escaped kidnapping attempts. Chad ranks 96 on the 2024 World Press Freedom Index.
- South Africa
Date: 29 May 2024
Current President: Cyril Ramaphosa (71 years old and has served since 2018)
Number of Political Parties: 52 registered parties
The political parties of South Africa are contesting for 400 seats in the National Assembly. About 27.79 million registered voters will receive three ballot papers to elect representatives in the National Assembly and Provincial Legislatures. For the first time, independent candidates will be contesting in the national and provincial legislatures.
According to Reporters Without Borders, “Journalists are rarely arrested in South Africa but there is a worrying trend of police violence against journalists and surveillance of investigative reporters.” South African is ranked 38 on the World Press Freedom Index.
- Madagascar
Date: May 2024
Current President: Andry Rajoelina (49 years old and has served since 2009)
Number of Political Parties: 40 registered political parties
According to the Reporters Without Borders, “Journalists are sometimes verbally abused by politicians or are victims of smear campaigns on social media, while physical attacks are rare.” The country ranks 100 on the World Press Freedom Index 2024.
- Mauritania
Date: 29 June 2024
Current President: Mohamed Ould Ghazouani (67 years old and has served since 2019)
Number of Political Parties: 27 registered parties
Mauritania is ranked 38 on the World Press Freedom Index 2024. According to Reporters Without Borders, “Journalists may be subjected to verbal attacks and harassment campaigns on social media.” The report also states that journalists require special authorisation to access areas in the northern borders of the country.
- Rwanda
Date: 15 July 2024
Current President: Paul Kagame (66 years old and has served since 2000)
Number of Political Parties: Five registered parties
Rwanda is ranked 144 on the World Press Freedom Index 2024. According to Reporters Without Borders, the Rwandan government uses various methods to prevent journalists from working freely, “including surveillance, espionage, arrest and enforced disappearance.” The report further states that there has been arbitrary arrests and detentions in recent years.
- Mozambique
Date: 9 October 2024
Current President: Filipe Nyusi (65 years old and has served since 2015)
Number of Political Parties: 19 registered parties
Mozambique ranks 105 in the World Press Freedom Index. Reporters Without Borders states that there has been an increase of attacks in recent years against journalists. “Journalists are victims of death threats, beatings by law enforcement, and even murder.” In 2017, the north part of the country had an Islamist Insurrection and journalists’ risk being arrested if they cover this region.
- Botswana
Date: October 2024
Current President: Mokgweetsi Masisi (61 years old and has served since 2018)
Number of Political Parties: 9 registered parties
According to Reporters Without Borders, “Journalists are rarely arrested and detained; they are sometime victims of police violence, especially during protests. Intelligence services use spyware to eavesdrop on journalists, who are frequent victims of smear campaigns on social media.” Journalists’ equipment, such as mobile phones and laptops, are often seized illegally.
- Tunisia
Date: October 2024
Current President: Kais Saied (66 years old and has served since 2019)
Number of Political Parties: 71 registered political parties
Tunisia is ranked 118 on the World Press Freedom Index. According to Reporters Without Borders, “Attacks to intimidate journalists are now widespread. On January 14, 2022, a correspondent of several international media outlets was beaten, and ten other reporters were brutalised while covering a protest.”
- Somaliland
Date: November 2024
Current President: Muse Bihi Abdi (76 years old and has served since December 2017)
Number of Political Parties: Three registered parties
According to Reporters Without Borders, journalists in Somaliland “operate in an environment of corruption and great insecurity. More than 50 media professionals have been killed since 2010, and it remains the most dangerous country for journalists in Africa.”
- Guinea Bissau
Date: November 2024
Current President: Umaro Sissoco Embalo (51 years old and has served since February 2020)
Number of Political Parties: 24 registered parties
According to Reporters Without Borders, “Journalists are often targets of physical attacks and media outlets are exposed to the possibility of being ransacked.” Independent radio stations are often threatened with suspension. The country is ranked 92 on the World Press Freedom Index.
- Namibia
Date: November 2024
Current President: Nangolo Mbumba (82 years old and has served since the passing of Hage Geingob in February 2024)
Number of Political Parties: 26 registered parties
According to Reporters Without Borders, journalists in Namibia are rarely exposed to threats or dangers. “Relations between authorities and reporters are generally good and no cases of intimidation have been reported when journalists were covering protests or strikes.”
- Ghana
Date: 7 December 2024
Current President: Nana Akufo-Addo (80 years old and has served since 2017)
Number of Political Parties: 29 registered parties
Reporters Without Borders notes that the safety of journalists has deteriorated in Ghana. “Several attacks on press freedom have been registered, including the intrusion of ruling party supporters into a TV studio and an attack on a journalist during a live report in October 2023. Politicians have also made death threats against investigative journalists. Most cases of police violence against journalists are not pursued.”
- South Sudan
Date: December 2024
Current President: Salva Kiir Mayardit (72 years old and has served since its independence in July 2011)
Number of Political Parties: 18 registered parties
According to Reporters Without Borders, “Almost all crimes of violence against journalists go unpunished. Both local and foreign media professionals who try to provide independent reporting are exposed to reprisals, such as execution, torture, kidnapping, arbitrary detention, poisoning, harassment, etc. In the face of these dangers, many decide to shut down their newspapers or leave the country.” The report says at least nine journalists have been killed since 2014. The country is ranked 136 on the World Press Freedom Index.
16. Cape Verde
Date: Unconfirmed
Current President: Jose Maria Neves (64 years old and has served since 2021, previously prime minister from 2001 – 2016)
Number of Political Parties: Seven registered parties
According to the report, the country has a favourable working environment for journalists in the region. “Since democracy was established in 1991, no journalist has been detained, abducted, placed under surveillance, or followed in connection with their work. Some journalists working at privately-owned media outlets have, however, reported being threatened after a story was published or broadcast. Similarly, journalists covering the ruling party or opposition parties may be harassed on social media by their supporters.” The country is ranked 41 on the World Press Freedom Index.
17: Mali
Date: Unconfirmed (delayed from February)
Current President: Colonel Assimi Goita (41 years old and has served since 2021)
Number of Political Parties: 22 registered parties (most parties in coalitions)
“The presence of armed groups and lack of security make working outside the capital, Bamako, extremely risky for journalists, as evidenced by the abduction of French reporter Olivier Dubois in Gao in April 2021, who was held hostage for nearly two years by the al-Qaeda–affiliated Support Group for Islam and Muslims (JNIM),” the report reads. “The murder of journalist Abdoul Aziz Djibrilla and the abduction of two of his colleagues in November 2023 illustrate the dangers journalists face in northern Mali. Bamako-based reporter Birama Touré’s disappearance for seven years (and probable death in a secret state security prison) serve as a reminder that the state sometimes resorts to deadly violence to silence a journalist. Russia’s growing influence in Mali and the arrival of mercenaries from the Russian paramilitary company Wagner presage a rise in disinformation and darker days for journalists, as was the case after their deployment in the Central African Republic in 2018.” The country ranks 114 on the World Press Freedom Index.
- Algeria
Date: Unconfirmed
Current President: Abdelmadjid Tebboune (78 years old and has served since December 2019)
Number of Political Parties: 29 registered parties
According to Reporters Without Borders, threats and intimidation of journalists is on the rise in Algeria, and there are no protection mechanisms in place at the moment. “Reporters critical of the authorities may face arbitrary detention, surveillance, and wiretapping. Outspoken journalists or those who support the ‘Hirak’ protest movement launched in February 2019 may be subjected to social media threats and hate campaigns waged from anonymous accounts by pro-government trolls known in Arabic as ‘doubab’ (electronic flies).” The country is ranked 139 on the World Press Freedom Index.
It is important for all journalists to be aware of potential risks and steps to follow should they find themselves in such situations. There are organisations like the Committee to Protect Journalists, which provide support to media workers around the world, such as rapid response assistance to journalists who are injured, forced to flee, or imprisoned for their work.
The Reporters Without Borders report can be read here.
The Reporters Without Borders Safety Guide for Journalist’s handbook can be read here
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