Sharp decline in Reporters Without Borders Global World Press Freedom Index in Francophone Africa

Many authoritarian regimes use economic tools to censor the media in Africa

Originally published on Global Voices

According to the 2025 Reporters Without Borders World Press Freedom Index, global press freedom is in a “difficult situation” and in decline. But what exactly is the situation in French-speaking Africa?

On May 2, 2025, Reporters Without Borders (RSF) published its global press freedom index. This year’s report flagged the economic turmoil, making press freedom extremely difficult and adding to the many political pressures in the region.

In 2025, the situation deteriorated sharply in Sub-Saharan Africa, especially in the French-speaking region. As in the rest of the world, the media companies’ economic vulnerability further compounds the political threats and pressures.

Instrumentalizing advertising revenue

In Africa, independent media outlets are becoming increasingly rare. This is mostly because their survival depends on advertising revenue, which often ends up in the hands of companies in the government’s back pocket.

Togo’s RSF ranking fell from 113 to 121 in just one year. Faced with this instability, on May 3, World Press Freedom Day, Narcisse Prince-Agbodjan, Secretary-General of the Togolese National Union of Independent Journalists (SYNJIT), published an article denouncing the government's tax system wherein media companies are under the same tax bracket as regular commercial enterprises. He called on Togolese journalists to speak up:

[…] la presse privée dans notre pays est à genoux. […]L’économie médiatique, bien qu’à l’étape embryonnaire, s’effondre déjà, et avec elle, la dignité de la profession.

Des journaux sont contraints de mettre la clé sous la porte. Ceux qui tiennent encore provisoirement debout, sont caractérisés par des parutions irrégulières. Les rédactions végètent dans la précarité. Entre vulnérabilité économique, fiscalité agressive, aide publique insuffisante, répression larvée et fracture numérique, les médias privés togolais semblent laissés pour compte. Pourtant, ils remplissent une mission d’intérêt général. Rien ne saurait justifier la décision de les soumettre aux mêmes régimes fiscaux que les entreprises commerciales ordinaires.

[…] In our country, independent media outlets are on their knees. […] The media economy is crumbling, taking with it the dignity of this profession.

Newspapers are being forced out of business. Those still standing typically have irregular publication schedules, with their editorial staff stuck in precarious conditions. Between the economic vulnerabilities, harsh taxation, insufficient government support, ongoing repression, and the digital divide, Togolese independent media outlets have been left high and dry. And yet, they fulfill a public service mission. Nothing can justify subjecting them to the same tax regimes as regular commercial enterprises.

In 2025, Benin also experienced a slight decline, falling from 89 to 92. In an interview with Afrik.com, RSF reported significant political interference in Benin’s media. In its 2025 report, the organization noted that the Beninese government has an economic influence on the press, mainly in how outlets receive advertising contracts. The report explains:

Le paysage médiatique est marqué par l’absence de grandes entreprises de presse. La plupart des médias ne sont pas viables et sont confrontés à l’étroitesse du marché publicitaire. Le gouvernement utilise régulièrement son pouvoir sur l’attribution des contrats publicitaires pour en priver certains médias critiques.

The absence of major media companies mars the media landscape. Most media outlets are financially unviable and face a tight advertising market. The government routinely uses its power over the issuance of advertising contracts to deprive certain outspoken media outlets.

Cameroon dropped one place from 130 to 131 this year. Given the precarious working conditions, it is difficult for Cameroonian journalists to pursue a professional career. In February 2025, a doctoral thesis by Hervé Tiwa from the Advanced School of Mass Communication (ASMAC) in Yaoundé, Cameroon, backs this assertion. According to the news website Le Quatrième Pouvoir (the Fourth Power), his thesis, “Print Media, Media Management, and Precarious Journalistic Working Conditions: A Socio-Economic Analysis of Independent Businesses in Cameroon,” provides a troubling analysis:

[…] la réalité économique du secteur est préoccupante. Les difficultés sont multiples : coûts de production élevés, réseaux de distribution défaillants, salaires irréguliers voire inexistants. Cette situation précaire affecte profondément la dignité des journalistes et la qualité de l’information.

[…] The economic reality in this sector is worrying. Many challenges exist, such as high production costs, crumbling distribution networks, and irregular or no salaries. This precarious situation profoundly affects the journalists’ dignity and the quality of their reporting.

Although RSF described Mauritania as the African leader in press freedom in 2024, this trend has not spared the country. In 2025, it fell 17 places in the global index from 33 to 50. Its downfall is palpable. The everyday lives of Mauritanian reporters, especially investigative journalists, are fraught with abuse and threats.

In 2025, Madagascar also fell 13 places from 100 to 113, Côte d'Ivoire fell from 53 to 64, and Chad from 96 to 108

Media freedoms have deteriorated even more in conflict-affected countries. The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) fell ten places to 133. The recent surge in war-related violations in North Kivu, in the east of the country, dealt a heavy blow to the media outlets and journalists forced to stop reporting to save their lives.

Countries under military rule

Today, at least five African countries are under military rule, including four in French-speaking West Africa and the Central Sahel: Guinea, Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger.

Guinea experienced a drastic drop in this ranking, falling 25 places from 78 in 2024 to 103 in 2025. This position reflects the military transition’s open hostility towards the press. Media professionals pay a heavy price in these regimes, often becoming victims of assaults, arbitrary arrests, and even death threats.

This year, Burkina Faso fell 19 places, from 86 in 2024 to 105 in 2025. Mali fell five places in the ranking to 114, and Niger fell three places to 80.  Since the military’s accession to power, threats, attacks, and arrests have become commonplace. In these three French-speaking countries under military rule in the Sahel, political instability and security risks relating to the presence of armed groups make it impossible to ensure the journalists’ safety.

Two exceptions: Gabon and Senegal

Although Africa shows the greatest deterioration in press freedom of any region, two glimpses of hope remain. Led by a transitional regime that recently ended with the election of a new president, Gabon rose from 56 in 2024 to 41 in 2025, becoming the best-placed French-speaking African country in this index.

Senegal, 74 in the 2025 RSF Index, performed well, increasing 20 places from 94 in 2024. This progress is due to the reforms the Bassirou Diomaye Faye regime has implemented since coming to power in April 2024. However, as RSF highlighted in its report, media companies in this country often face politically motivated tax audits that hamper their work.

The Central African Republic also performed well, moving up four places from 76 to 72.

Overall, the 2025 RSF index raises the alarm that if nothing is done, media independence will remain an illusion on the continent.