South Africa’s e-Skills Policy. From e-Skills to Media Literacy?

This paper starts from the observation that media literacy is gaining traction on the agenda of policy makers in the EU, in EU Member States, in international organizations such as UNESCO and progressively in countries worldwide. In markets - such as in the EU - where access to media, the Internet, and ICTs is less and less an issue, and where general literacy is high, it is not surprising that media literacy is gaining more prominence in policy. There is however very little research on whether and how critical media literacy is implemented in developing countries and more specifically in Africa. This paper focusses on how components of media literacy are slowly emerging in the South African policy context. Media literacy in a South African context emerges in relation to discussions on e-skills and digital literacy.