Most Portuguese-speaking countries have improved their position in the Reporters Without Borders (RSF) press freedom index, in which only Angola and Portugal have dropped positions.

Among the eight of the nine states of the Community of Portuguese Speaking Countries (CPLP) that are included in this index, since São Tomé and Príncipe is not, East Timor now occupies the second best position (10th), just after Portugal (9th), having climbed seven places.

Cape Verde has also improved in this ranking, now occupying 33rd place (36th in 2022).

Guinea-Bissau is now in 78th place, up 14 places on the previous year, and Brazil is in 92nd place (up 18 places).

Mozambique climbed 14 places to 102nd, and Equatorial Guinea climbed 21 places to 120th.

Angola recorded the worst result among the Portuguese-speaking countries, now occupying 125th place in this ranking of 180 countries, and also recorded the steepest drop (26 positions) of the CPLP states analyzed.

According to the note accompanying the 21st edition of RSF's press freedom index, some of the biggest falls occurred in Africa, such as in Senegal (down 31 places to 104th), mainly "due to the criminal charges against two journalists - Pape Alé Niang and Pape Ndiaye - and the sharp decrease in security for media personnel".

In the Maghreb, Tunisia (121st place) dropped 27 places, "due to the increasing authoritarianism of the President, Kais Saied, and the inability of President Kais Saied to tolerate criticism from the `media'". (NM)