Deadline: 21-Nov-2025
The Southern Africa Accountability Journalism Project is inviting both newsrooms and freelance journalists from select southern African countries to submit pitches for investigative stories that seek to expose wrongdoing, abuses of power, or failures of accountability.
The focus areas, objectives, priorities, and themes include: investigative stories that seek to expose wrongdoing, abuses of power, or failures of accountability.
Each selected newsroom will receive a grant of USD 3,000, with three grants available. The funding can be used to cover journalist remuneration and reporting-related expenses.
Editors or staff reporters representing established newsrooms from South Africa, eSwatini, Lesotho, Botswana, Namibia, Zimbabwe, and Mozambique are eligible to apply. Each newsroom team will be paired with an investigative editor to help deliver a strong, impactful investigation or series within an agreed timeframe.
Each selected freelance journalist will receive a grant of USD 1,500, with five grants available. These funds may also be used for journalist remuneration and reporting costs.
Freelance and independent journalists from the same countries are also invited to apply under a separate category. Selected journalists will receive editorial support from an investigative editor to strengthen their investigations.
Pitches for both categories should be a single, compelling narrative of no more than 700 words and must include a budget detailing how the grant will be used. Newsroom applicants should include a short profile of their newsroom, covering ownership, turnover, readership, and recent impactful stories, along with details of the reporter(s) involved. Freelance applicants should submit a CV and a few examples of their best published reporting from recent months.
Pitching journalists and newsrooms are encouraged to discuss their ideas with SA|AJP editors before submission. Draft pitches or queries may be sent to the project’s editorial coordinator for feedback before the deadline.
Final applications must be submitted by email as a single PDF attachment, including the pitch, budget, and required additional information. The subject line should include the applicant’s name or newsroom, the word “pitch,” and a short title of the story idea.
The deadline for submissions is 21 November 2025.
For more information, visit Henry Nxumalo Foundation.
