Sikhumbuzo Moyo [email protected]
THE Zimbabwe Media Commission (ZMC), in partnership with the National University of Science and Technology (NUST), will next month host a three-day media innovation hackathon aimed at developing technology-based solutions to challenges in Zimbabwe’s media and information environment.
The event, running from November 3 to 5 under the theme “Innovating for Media Freedom, Access to Information and Responsible Digital Transformation”, will bring together young innovators, academics, media practitioners, technology experts, designers and researchers.
In a media brief, the ZMC said the initiative comes at a time when digital technologies are rapidly transforming the media landscape, creating both opportunities and challenges for information gathering, production and dissemination.
“The media and information environment is being rapidly reshaped by digital technologies, artificial intelligence, social media, data analytics and new information platforms.
“The ZMC–NUST Media Innovation Hackathon creates a platform for young innovators to respond to these changes by developing locally relevant technological solutions to real media and information challenges,” said the Commission.
The initiative is also expected to strengthen collaboration between the media sector, academia, technology experts and public institutions, while creating opportunities for promising innovations to be developed further, incubated or piloted.
A hackathon is an intensive collaborative event in which participants work within a limited period to develop innovative solutions to identified problems. Participants typically combine their skills to design and build prototypes or proof-of-concept products that demonstrate how their ideas can be applied in practice.
The ZMC–NUST initiative is expected to provide a platform for participants to explore how technology can improve access to information, promote media freedom and support responsible digital transformation in Zimbabwe.
