The City of Johannesburg, through the Community Development department: Library and Information Services (LIS), officially launched the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (Unesco) Media and Information Literacy (MIL) City Network Pilot on 26 June 2026 at Noordgesig Library.
In November 2024, the City’s Library and Information Services e-learning unit participated in the United Nations World Urban Forum held in Egypt, where UNESCO introduced the operational guidelines for the Media and Information Literacy (MIL) global network. Subsequently, in April 2025, UNESCO’s international office invited the City of Johannesburg to represent Africa as one of only 10 pilot cities globally. The City successfully secured the required support through the Mayoral Office, coordinated by the CoJ Knowledge Management Office, International Relations Office, and Library and Information Services.
Mayor Dada Morero joined the launch virtually as he was out of the country. Guests included Unesco Professor Mbangi Nepfumbada, representatives of the Innovation & Knowledge Management, Public Safety’s Xolani Fihla and Tshegofatso B. Malapane, from Joburg City Safety Program, Social Development’s Bafana Magagula, representatives of the Joburg Tourism, Ward Councillor, Cllr Ismael Steenkamp, CoJ Libraries and Information Services director Nobuntu Mpendulo and her team.
Member of the Mayoral Council, Cllr Thapelo Amad, joined the launch and gave the opening address. “The City of Johannesburg is proud to be part of this global network. The Unesco MIL Network Pilot aims to strengthen the ability of citizens to access reliable information, think critically, and use media responsibly and safely. Weare the only city on the continent out of 10 cities chosen for the pilot. Two more cities have since joined us. And we are proud to be giving the City’s residents access to broader information through our LIS digital transformation programmes. And we thank all our stakeholders as well as Unesco for choosing our City to be part of this pilot on the continent. This is testimony to the City’s world-class status,” said the MMC.
The City’s participation affirms Johannesburg’s commitment to promoting:
- Social cohesion and inclusivity in the digital economy
- Diversity and multicultural engagement
- Public safety and informed communities for smart citizenry
Johannesburg’s selection as the African pilot city highlights its leadership role in advancing innovation and knowledge-sharing, positioning the city as a progressive, safe, and globally connected smart city.
The implementation of the pilot is coordinated by Library and Information Services in partnership with key City departments. The launch event served as a platform to showcase the City’s ongoing work in advancing Media and Information Literacy across communities.
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