The Digital News Transformation Fund has completed its second round of grants, approving R15.8 million for 22 independent news publishers across seven provinces. The round brings the total number of funded projects to 43 across both rounds.
The DNTF is a partnership between Google and the Association of Independent Publishers, administered by Tshikululu Social Investments. It provides project-based grants and capacity building to independent publishers, structured so that Google funds but does not allocate.
An independent adjudication committee assesses applications, and a board ratifies process compliance without weighing in on individual merits.
When stakeholders gathered in Rosebank in March for the fund’s national roundtable, the recurring themes were transparency, reach, and whether the DNTF’s communication was actually landing where publishers are.
DNTF round 2
Round 2 grantees span all four of the fund’s maturity tiers: Ignite, Build, Grow, and Engage.
Three projects operate at national level.
The rest are provincial, covering North West, KwaZulu-Natal, Gauteng, Limpopo, the Eastern Cape, the Western Cape, and the Free State.
Vernacular publishing is also deepening.
Round 1 included isiZulu, isiXhosa, Afrikaans, and Sesotho titles. Round 2 adds Sepedi, Xitsonga, and Setswana publications, among others. The fund now supports content in at least nine South African languages.
Low-data and mobile-first distribution continues to expand.
Sivubela Newspaper is building data-free browsing for readers in KwaZulu-Natal’s Ilembe District. Iliso Labantu News distributes via WhatsApp to reach Cape Town’s informal settlements. Tshwane Bulletin, The Guard, and Pondoland Times are designing mobile-first platforms for township and rural audiences.
Data journalism has moved from individual projects to sector-wide capability.
Inside Metros is a civic data and news hub focused on year-round municipal governance reporting across South Africa’s metros.
Our City News, run by the Henry Nxumalo Foundation, brings investigative journalism capacity focused on Johannesburg governance.
AI adoption is also more deliberate this round.
Food For Mzansi’s Agri-Pulse 360 uses retrieval-augmented generation and Vertex AI to deliver personalised advisory content to 244,000 emerging commercial farmers who fall outside the reach of both corporate agri-media and consumer news.
Moretele Times is integrating AI-assisted workflows for analytics and content production.
Funding
The 22 approved publishers, by tier:
Ignite tier:
- Garankuwa Voice (Gauteng),
- Newsfact Publication (North West),
- Ko Skolong (North West),
- Metro News (Free State),
- Nhlalala News (Limpopo).
Build tier:
- Injobo Newspaper (KwaZulu-Natal),
- Pondoland Times (Eastern Cape).
Grow tier:
- Moretele Times (North West),
- Impact Web-Based App (Western Cape),
- Rainbow News (Eastern Cape),
- Seipone Madireng (Limpopo),
- Dizindaba / Izwi Lethu (Western Cape),
- Our City News (Gauteng),
- Inside Metros (National),
- Iliso Labantu News (Western Cape),
- The Guard (Free State),
- MambaOnline (National),
- Sivubela Newspaper (KwaZulu-Natal),
- The Debrief (Gauteng),
- Tshwane Bulletin (Gauteng).
Engage tier:
- DataDesk (Gauteng),
- Food For Mzansi / Agri-Pulse 360 (National).
Process changes after DNTF round 1
An independent audit of the Round 1 application process, conducted by RSM SA in May 2026, assessed it as generally operating effectively and confirmed the round was executed fairly.
Following that audit, the DNTF has implemented a centralised application tracking register, formal reconciliation checks at each stage, and strengthened scoring procedures. A dedicated grants management system is in development.
The fund is also establishing a consultative Stakeholder Forum to give industry associations a structured platform to raise concerns and submit recommendations to the board.
Adjudication Committee member Makhosazana Zwane-Siguqa said what stood out in this round was the improvement in how applications aligned with digital transformation.
“These are not applications for basic websites or podcast studios. Publishers and editorial teams are presenting sophisticated and nuanced strategies for reaching their audiences through mobile-first platforms, WhatsApp channels and short-form video.”
Full project descriptions are at dntfund.org.za/impact. Publishers interested in future rounds can visit dntfund.org.za.
NOW READ: The students no one wanted. The results no one expected [FEATURE]
