to protect personal privacy; to provide for the regulation of the mass media; to establish a Media and
Information Commission and to provide for matters connected therewith or incidental to the foregoing.
ENACTED by the President and Parliament of Zimbabwe.
PART I
PRELIMINARY
1 Short title
This Act may be cited as the Access to Information and Protection of Privacy Act, [Chapter 10:27].
2 Interpretation
(1) In this Act—
“applicant” means a person requesting access in terms of section 6 to a record or information held by a
public body;
“Commission” means the Media and Information Commission established by section 38;
“controlling interest”, in relation to a mass media service company, means—
(a) the majority of the shares in the company; or
(b) shares representing more than half the share capital of the company; or
(c) shares of a value in excess of half the share capital of the company; or
(d) shares entitling the holder or holders thereof to a majority or preponderance of votes in the affairs
of the company;
“excluded information” means records excluded from the application of this Act in terms of section 4;
“Fund” means the Media and Information Fund established by section 43;
“head”, in relation to a public body, means—
(a) the person designated as the head of a public body in the second column of the Second
Schedule; or
(b) any other person whom the Minister may, from time to time, designate as the head of a public
body for the purposes of this Act;
“judicial administration record” means a record containing information relating to a presiding officer or a
justice of the peace, including—
(a) scheduling of presiding officers and trials;
(b) the content of judicial training programmes;
(c) statistics of judicial activity prepared by or for a judge;
“law enforcement” includes—
(a) policing, including criminal intelligence operations; or
(b) investigations that lead to a penalty or sanction being imposed; or
(c) proceedings that result in a penalty or sanction being imposed; or
(d) control of immigration; or
(e) national defence and security; or
(f) maintenance of public order;
“local government body” means—
(a) a municipality as defined in the Urban Councils Act [Chapter 29:15];
(b) a council as defined in the Rural District Councils Act [Chapter 29:13];
(c) a catchment council or subcatchment council established in terms of the Water Act
[Chapter 20:24];
(d) a board of cemetery trustees established under the Cemeteries Act [Chapter 5:04];
(e) any board, committee, commission, panel, agency or corporation that is created or owned by a
body referred to in paragraphs (a) to (d) and all the members or officers of which are appointed
or chosen by or under the authority of that body;
“mass media owner” means—
(a) in the case of a mass media service company, the person who holds a controlling interest in the
company; or
(b) in the case of a mass media service that is not a company, the person who owns or co-owns the
service;
“mass media service” or “mass media” includes any service or media consisting in the transmission of
voice, visual, data or textual messages to an unlimited number of persons, and includes an
advertising agency, publisher or, except as otherwise excluded or specially provided for in this Act, a
news agency or broadcasting licensee as defined in the Broadcasting Services Act [Chapter 12:06];
“Minister” means the Minister responsible for information and publicity or any other Minister to whom the
President may, from time to time, assign the administration of this Act;
“National Archives” means the National Archives of Zimbabwe established in terms of the National
Archives of Zimbabwe Act [Chapter 25:06];
“personal information” means recorded information about an identifiable person, and includes—
(a) the person’s name, address or telephone number;
(b) the person’s race, national or ethnic origin, colour, religious or political beliefs or associations;
(c) the person’s age, sex, sexual orientation, marital status or family status;
(d) an identifying number, symbol or other particulars assigned to that person;
(e) fingerprints, blood type or inheritable characteristics;
(f) information about a person’s health care history, including a physical or mental disability;
(g) information about educational, financial, criminal or employment history;
(h) anyone else’s opinions about the individual; and
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