Patrick Chitumba in Gweru
GOVERNMENT is accelerating the country’s digitalisation programme, targeting universal television and radio coverage by the end of 2028 to ensure that every Zimbabwean has access to information.
The programme is being implemented with speed, with five new television transmitters expected to have been installed by the end of this year and another 10 planned in 2027.
The expansion is expected to increase television coverage to 56 percent by the end of next year, as Government moves towards completing the country’s digitalisation project in 2028.
Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Information, Publicity and Broadcasting Services, Mr Nick Mangwana said the programme seeks to ensure that no community is left behind in accessing information.
He was speaking in an interview on the sidelines of the Ministry of Information, Publicity and Broadcasting Services strategic planning workshop in Gweru today.
The four-day workshop brings together the Ministry’s leadership, departmental heads and CEOs of related parastatals to review performance, take stock of achievements, and chart a clear strategic direction for 2027.
“For the first time in about six years, we are now on an accelerated phase of the digitalisation project. We are rolling out more transmitters. By the end of this year, we would have installed five new transmitters,” he said.
“In 2028 we are expecting to finish the whole digitalisation project,” he said.
Mr Mangwana said radio coverage is also set for significant expansion, with the ministry targeting 85 percent national coverage by the end of 2026.
“The target is to increase coverage to 90 percent by the first quarter of 2027 and 95 percent by the end of that year, before achieving universal coverage in 2028,” he said.
He said the targets are part of the ministry’s broader strategy to give all Zimbabweans access to information, in line with the Second Republic’s mantra of leaving no one and no place behind.
The Permanent Secretary said funding had been one of the biggest obstacles to implementing the digitalisation programme, adding that Government had ring-fenced funds to accelerate the universal access to information initiative.
Mr Mangwana said the Ministry of Information will continue procuring vehicles to enable its officers to reach communities across the country and improve information dissemination.
Reflecting on the ministry’s 2026 achievements, Mr Mangwana highlighted the CAB3 campaign, which he said had become widely recognised through an extensive national information drive conducted in partnership with media institutions, including the Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation and Zimpapers.
“The campaign demonstrated the importance of collaboration between Government and media organisations in ensuring that national programmes reached citizens,” he said.
Mr Mangwana also said the ministry continues to strengthen international cooperation and professional development through memoranda of understanding with countries such as Russia and China.
“The arrangements have facilitated training opportunities, masterclasses and exposure visits for Zimbabwean journalists, enabling them to learn from international media institutions and keep pace with developments in the global media industry,” he said.
