SECTOR 4 4.3 Salary levels and general working conditions, including safety, for journalists and other media practitioners, are adequate Panellists estimated that about 80% of Tanzanian journalists do not have an employment contract, which means they earn low wages and are not entitled to most employment benefits. The situation is abysmal in the private media and worse in community radios, where a majority – with an exception of the selected few – have no fixed pay at all but simply meagre allowances. Over the last ten years, entry-level salaries have either remained the same or fallen, with some earning as low as 350,000 TZS (US$150). Freelance journalists are among the least paid, earning on average 10,000 TZS (US$4) per story, compared to foreign correspondents who earn about US$350 for the same amount of work. Panellists said the low entry-level salary reflected the young graduate salary rate across the economy, which averages 450,000 TZS (US$200) per month. Experienced journalists earn a little more. Senior journalists, for example, earn about 1 million TZS (US$434) per month, while editors earn 1,5 to 5 million TZS (US$650–2,170) on average. Beyond salaries, working conditions are generally poor. A legal requirement for media owners to provide their employees with insurance and social security cover is frequently ignored. Unpaid journalists do not qualify for medical cover and journalists across the board are generally uninsured against professional risks. Panellists described incidences of physical assaults (including abductions) involving journalists, to demonstrate the lack of security and safety in the industry. Scores: Individual scores: 1 Country does not meet indicator 2 Country meets only a few aspects of indicator 3 Country meets some aspects of indicator 4 Country meets most aspects of indicator 5 Country meets all aspects of the indicator Average score: Score of previous years: 47 AFRICAN MEDIA BAROMETER TANZANIA 2019 ✓ ✓ ✓✓ ✓✓ ✓ ✓✓✓✓✓ 1.8 2006: n/a; 2008: n/a; 2010: 2.5; 2012: 1.8; 2015: 2.2