POTRAZ Drives Evidence-Based Regulation to Advance Digital Innovation

The Postal and Telecommunications Regulatory Authority of Zimbabwe (POTRAZ) says it is taking a whole-of-society approach to regulation, ensuring that new policies on emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI) and the Internet of Things (IoT) are informed by evidence and co-creation.

Speaking at the Global Symposium on Regulation for Sustainable Digital Development, in Saudi Arabia, yesterday, POTRAZ Director General Dr. Gift Kalisto Machengete said working with the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), has developed Zimbabwe’s digital innovation profile through nationwide consultations that mapped barriers, opportunities, and priorities.

“We have now moved beyond profiling to implementation. The same inclusive approach has shaped the creation of the National Innovation Accelerating Centre, which was validated in a workshop attended by nearly 60 stakeholders,” Dr. Machengete said.

By Ruvarashe Gora

In early 2025, more than 50 entrepreneurs, regulators, academics, and civil society representatives took part in a strategic foresight co-creation exercise aimed at anticipating how AI and IoT could disrupt various sectors. According to Dr. Machengete, this process is supported by POTRAZ’s ongoing investment in ICT research at universities, whose findings are published in the regulator’s research platforms to generate empirical evidence on emerging technologies.

He added that research-backed regulation is critical to ensuring that digital policies are both inclusive and future-oriented. “As regulators, we now have to ensure that everything we do, we do with others. There is a need for co-creation together so that regulatory frameworks are inclusive and widely acceptable.”

POTRAZ has been funding ICT research and development, creating spaces for dialogue, and promoting collaborative approaches that integrate government, industry, academia, and society. The authority believes that this evidence-driven and participatory model will strengthen Zimbabwe’s digital transformation journey while ensuring no one is left behind.