MDDA marks 13 years of transforming media

South Africa’s Media Development and Diversity Agency (MDDA), is this month celebrating 13 years of helping to transform South Africa’s media landscape. The agency on Friday, held an event to mark this occasion in Parktown, Johannesburg where Communications Minister Faith Muthambi, was the main speaker at the event. “The MDDA has been tasked with providing financial and non-financial support to community and small commercial media projects throughout the country. The MDDA has to be the supporting pillar on which the media can play its critical role in aiding good governance, transparency and accountability. Without a wide array of information, people’s opinions and views would be limited and their impressions and conclusions of the world around them stunted,” the Minister told stakeholders attending the celebrations.
Mr Themba Dlamini, the newly appointed CEO at the agency as of 1 January 2017 was introduced by Minister Muthambi. Dlamini’s career has seen him lead the Black Business Forum (BMF) and the Independent Communications Authority (ICASA), where he served as managing director in both entities. Dlamini is also a member of the National Planning Commission.
While thanking the board, management and staff members, who have steered the MDDA ship until a permanent CEO was found, Minister Muthambi said Dlamini must uphold the prescripts of good governance to take the agency forward. “Over the years, the MDDA had consistently achieved clean audits and there have also been some challenges which must be urgently attended to, so that the MDDA becomes the MDDA of ‘yesteryear’ in its governance but at the same time, it has to prepare for the era of broadband and how it provides services to communities whose profiles, through migration and other factors, are themselves in constant transformation.”