1. Any public authority that exercises power in the areas of broadcasting or telecommunications regulation should be independent and adequately protected against interference, particularly of a political or economic nature. 2. The appointments process for members of a regulatory body should be open and transparent, involve the participation of civil society and shall not be controlled by any particular party. 3. Any public authority that exercises powers in areas of broadcast or telecommunications should be formally accountable to the public through a multi-party body. The current untenable regulatory framework is evidenced by the fact that the ZMC’s chief executive officer, Dr Tafataona Mahoso, is also the Chairperson of BAZ. The Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (ICASA), is hailed as a model independent regulator on the continent. It is MISA-Zimbabwe’s argument that the manner in which the Zimbabwean regulators namely the Broadcasting Authority of Zimbabwe (BAZ) under the BSA, the Posts and Telecommunications Regulatory Authority of Zimbabwe, and Zimbabwe Media Commission (ZMC) under AIPPA, are constituted makes them susceptible to direct political interference. AIPPA through the ZMC imposes statutory regulation in breach of the Banjul Declaration on the Principles of Freedom of Expression in Africa while BAZ is hostage to the whims and dictates of the Executive in violation of the African Charter on Broadcasting. These bodies need to be replaced by a truly independent communications regulator that will oversee these sectors. This new regulator’s independence must be guaranteed by the law and must have financial, structural and functional independence in order to regulate the sector effectively and impartially for the development of the ICT sector to be guaranteed. mobile penetration/telecommunications On a positive note though and according to latest World Bank figures, access to cellphones in Zimbabwe has risen by 646 percent since 2008, by far the largest jump in the region. In 2008, only 13 percent of Zimbabweans had access to cellphones. Now, the penetration rate – the ration of cellphones to the population – stands at 97 percent. According to the 2012 Sub-Saharan Africa Mobile Observatory Report , more people access the web via their cellphones in Zimbabwe than elsewhere in the world. Mobile internet access accounts for more than half of all web traffic in Zimbabwe at 58.1 percent, far higher than the global average. Zimbabwe’s multi-currency regime also triggered a boom in telecoms investment in the wake of the removal of duties on network equipment, cellphones, computers and other accessories. This allowed companies to invest more in expansion while making cellphones cheaper.