The launch of Swazi TV on the DStv Swaziland bouquet was transmitted live yesterday from the Hospital Hill. The launch coincided with a live transmission on the local channel that now airs on DStv’s Channel 139.
The event, which has been deemed a milestone and a historic event that will greatly benefit the Swazi nation, was attended by Minister of Tourism Macford Sibandze, former Minister of Economic Planning Reverend Absalom Muntu Dlamini and STVA Board member, Abner Tembe. Others present included Director of Information in the Ministry of Information, Communication and Technology Martin Dlamini, the PS Nathaniel Mahluza, Multichoice Swaziland CEO Phumi Drummond, Director of the Swaziland Broadcasting and Information Service (SBIS) Percy Simelane and Multichoice Africa’s Christina Nel among others. To make the event memorable, there were performances by local artist Nomalungelo Dladla and Umkhokheli LaZwide.
Speaking on behalf of Minister of ICT Nelisiwe Shongwe, Minister Sibandze said he was pleased to be part of this historic milestone in the history of the national broadcaster. “Today, the station realises a dream that it has had over the years, to finally attain 100% television coverage. This dream has taken years to come true due to the mountainous terrain in our beautiful kingdom. What we are witnessing today was born from the womb of hard work, dedication and a visionary personnel,” he further said.
Convened
He highlighted that in 2006, during a meeting convened by the South African Broadcasting Association (SABA), Multichoice Africa made a commitment to Swazi TV, to fulfill its dream of being transmitted on satellite. “At the time, other African countries like Botswana, Namibia, Kenya and Zambia were already on the DStv platform. Today, we are grateful to witness this dream. We believe this partnership will benefit Multichoice Africa, DStv Swaziland, Swazi TV and the Swazi nation who have been deprived of a full Swazi TV signal since 1978 when this broadcaster came to life,” he added.
Sibandze used the Russian theatre practitioner Constantine Stanslavisk in driving the point home that ‘Preparation is a master plan’. “Satellite broadcasting will enhance the future prospect for Swazi TV to be able to present her own story in the region and the continent in the future,” he said
Multichoice Africa’s Christina Nel officially welcomed Swazi TV to the DStv family.
She highlighted that the realisation of the new Swazi TV satellite-delivered service has been made possible through a partnership between the ministry of information, communication and technology, the Swaziland Television Authority (STVA) and Multichoice Swaziland.
“Multichoice Africa has, in some countries where there is a significant subscriber base, agreements with public broadcasters to carry the national television channel. This includes the NBC in Namibia and ZTV in Zimbabwe. These broadcasts are only enabled for DStv subscribers in each of the respective countries and are not available to DStv subscribers in the rest of Africa.
Therefore, in the case of Swazi TV, the channel will only be available to DStv subscribers residing in Swaziland. This is because the programme rights on these channels are specific to that country only,” she explained. She further said this was a great partnership that would see both businesses grow in leaps and bounds.
No comments:
Post a Comment