‘Home-grown systems needed to tackle social media imperialism’
ZIMBABWE must develop home-grown information management systems that are critical in combating “data imperialism” and safeguarding national security, Information, Publicity and Broadcasting Services Minister Dr Jenfan Muswere has said.
Dr Muswere said social media is now a threat to national security and the Government under President Mnangagwa has developed a cyber and data protection legislation to support safe use of the cyberspace.
Some of the laws and policies include the Freedom of Information Act, Smart Zimbabwe 2030 Master Plan and the Zimbabwe Media Commission Act
The Government, he added, is developing community radio stations, licensing new players to promote diversity and holding awareness campaigns to support the mainstream media and curtail proliferation of fake news.
He said the country’s innovation hubs, which the Government has resourced, should develop systems that combat threats posed by social media.
Delivering a lecture at the Zimbabwe National Defence University on Wednesday last week, Dr Muswere noted that control over data empowers foreign entities to potentially influence events within a nation, citing the Arab Spring uprisings as an example.
The Arab Spring refers to a series of anti-government protests and uprisings that swept across several Arab countries in 2010 and 2011, fuelled partly by social media platforms, which ultimately led to regime change in some countries.
Minister Muswere emphasised the need to redefine national security in the context of the Information Age and ensure control over data and information access to safeguard national security.
This approach, he added, would mitigate the risks associated with “data imperialism”, where external entities potentially exert undue influence through control of information and communication technologies.
“Whoever owns this control over data in terms of data sovereignty, whichever country, such information management systems can easily influence the events of any country,” he said.
“So, it is prudent for us as a people, as a continent, to be able to work around that through gateways, through innovation hubs, like those developed by His Excellency, the President, Dr ED Mnangagwa.
“It is important for us to have home-grown information management systems that can manage, generate, transmit and mass communicate with the generality of the people of Zimbabwe in terms of what people think, what people perceive and in terms of what the citizens of our country can do, and then be in a position to be able to believe in themselves.
“What is also of importance is how we define a Zimbabwean.
“This is why we are rallying around the national philosophy, which is nyika inovakwa nevene vayo.
“That is, as Zimbabweans, we should be able to develop our own home-grown information management systems that can manage our media landscape.”
He said there was need to redefine national security to underline the importance of cybersecurity, “because the Arab Spring is an example of what could befall any nation in the context of utilisation of various social media platforms”.
“What people get to understand, to value, to identify themselves as Zimbabweans or as Africans is about the information that they consume.
“But what kind of information is being generated by most of these social media platforms that have a digital footprint is what is of importance, which then defines the digital sovereignty part of it.”
Dr Muswere said the use of high-tech voice cloning techniques and generative artificial intelligence (AI) by adversarial entities could be used against Zimbabwe with devastating effects.
“In utilising algorithms, one can be able to paint a gloomy, catastrophic picture of any country on various social media platforms,” he added.
“If you analyse the trends in the context of Zimbabwe on social media in terms of the terabytes, in terms of the transmission of messages of information both negative or positive, that influences how our people think, that influences how our economy functions, that influences how we react to any circumstance.”
He said a small group of people using hightech AI can create alarm and despondency in any country.
“So, this is why it is important for us to redefine our national security in the context of information systems.”