OWN CORRESPONDENT
 HARARE-A coalition of 30 civil society and community-based organizations in Zimbabwe has voiced deep concern over the excessive costs associated with certifying Data Protection Officers (DPOs), warning that the current pricing model turns fundamental data privacy compliance into an exclusionary barrier rather than a nationwide public safeguard.
The Alliance for Responsible Technology & AI (ART-AI Zimbabwe)—a civic network advocating for equitable technology governance and digital safety across the country—argues that the mandatory US$1,250 fee for official DPO certification, alongside high tiered licensing levies, effectively locks out the very grassroots institutions and local professionals who handle sensitive citizen records daily.
While the coalition affirmed the necessity of strong data governance under the Cyber and Data Protection Act, it warned that treating privacy compliance as a high-priced revenue stream creates acute vulnerabilities in rural and marginalized communities. In rural settings, traditional leaders, village heads, local clinics, and small community-based organizations routinely gather, document, and manage detailed household information for social assistance, local governance, and community registries. These community institutions manage some of the most sensitive personal data in the country, making localized data protection officers essential to protect citizens’ privacy and prevent data misuse.
“Data protection cannot be treated as a luxury reserved for well-capitalized corporate entities in the capital,” said Shingirai Nyahwa, National Coordinator of ART-AI Zimbabwe. “When a village registry or a local community group handling vulnerable household data is priced out of training a compliance officer, the entire privacy ecosystem breaks down. Qualified young graduates, particularly young women in rural provinces who could serve as community privacy guardians, are being systematically shut out by prohibitive training gatekeeping.”
The coalition highlighted that data protection regimes around the world prioritize accessible compliance and risk mitigation rather than monetization. In the European Union under the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), organizations are empowered to appoint qualified internal or external officers based on professional competence and standard qualifications without paying a statutory, state-monopolized certification levy. Regionally, South Africa’s Protection of Personal Information Act (POPIA) makes the statutory registration of an Information Officer completely free through the Information Regulator’s digital portal, while Kenya’s Office of the Data Protection Commissioner (ODPC) maintains accessible, low-tier administrative fees starting at approximately US$30 (KES 4,000) for micro-entities and non-profits to ensure broad-based participation.
In light of these disparities, ART-AI Zimbabwe is urging the regulatory authorities and policy makers to overhaul the existing framework by replacing punitive cost barriers with a public-interest model. The alliance is calling for complete fee waivers and state-backed capacity building for rural community institutions, traditional leaders, public schools, and non-profit entities. It is also urging the creation of dedicated training subsidies and bursaries for young female graduates in outlying provinces, alongside opening up the training accreditation framework to foster competitive, accessible learning platforms nationwide.
The coalition emphasized that safeguarding citizen privacy must start from the ground up, maintaining that a robust, inclusive data culture cannot take root behind exorbitant financial walls.
