For instance, Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs Minister, Ziyambi Ziyambi, who was steering the Bill on behalf of Information, Publicity and Broadcasting Services Minister, Monica Mutsvangwa, conceded that there was no harm in removing the clause that allowed the police to assist in media investigations. Among the other agreed positions, was the need for the Bill to recognise the need for co -regulation of the media. This should then set the course for the proposed Zimbabwe Media Practitioners Bill which, if enacted into law, will foster media accountability and professionalism through a media co-regulatory mechanism together with the Zimbabwe Media Commission (ZMC). Media stakeholders under the auspices of the Media Alliance of Zimbabwe (MAZ), have since come up with the Draft Zimbabwe Media Practitioners Bill, which was widely welcomed by the media sector during nationwide consultative meetings on the proposed law. media government relations In a positive development, a panel comprising journalists, media lecturers and representatives of civic society, noted that while relations between the media and government had relatively improved, more still needs to be done to foster media freedom and the enjoyment of freedom of expression rights. The panelists who met in January 2020, under the auspices of the African Media Barometer (AMB) Zimbabwe, noted that the current Minister of Information, Publicity and Broadcasting Services, Monica Mutsvangwa, is “proactive” in engaging with journalists. The findings covered the period between November 2015 – January 2020. In a summary of their findings on the obtaining media situation, the panelists said in some instances, the Minister had intervened to prevent “threatened” arrests of journalists conducting their lawful professional duties. It was noted that the ongoing engagements between the media and government was a positive departure from the animosity and suspicion that existed in the past. “Government (weekly Cabinet) briefings are now open to all, and invitations to government functions are generally issued to all journalists and not just the state media.” 8