Online Reporter
Wallace Ruzvidzo, [email protected]
AN informed citizenry is central to Zimbabwe’s ambition of attaining upper-middle-income status by 2030, Information, Publicity and Broadcasting Services Minister Dr Zhemu Soda has said.
Speaking to journalists after touring the Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation (ZBC) studios at Pockets Hill in Harare yesterday, Dr Soda underscored the media’s pivotal role in driving national development.
The Minister said, as articulated by President Mnangagwa, no one and no place must be excluded as the country advances towards its development goals, particularly in terms of access to information. He stressed that ZBC, as the national broadcaster, carries a vital responsibility in keeping citizens abreast of developments.
“ZBC plays a very critical role in informing, educating and entertaining the public. No one must be left behind. As we aspire to become an upper-middle-income society, everyone must be part of the mainstream national development trajectory. Participation is only possible when people are informed and able to make informed choices and decisions,” Dr Soda said.
The Minister added that Government would ensure the national broadcaster is adequately equipped to sustain its modernisation drive.
“What we have seen from the brief given by the Chief Executive Officer shows that ZBC is migrating from analogue to digital systems. The corporation is also working to extend signal transmission to hard-to-reach areas, which requires deploying more transmitters nationwide in pursuit of leaving no one and no place behind,” he said.
Dr Soda was accompanied by his deputy Dr Omphile Marupi, Permanent Secretary Mr Nick Mangwana, Chief Director Mr Johnathan Gandari and Director Media Services, Mr George Chisoko.
ZBC chief executive officer Mr Sugar Chagonda said the broadcaster occupies a unique space in the national ecosystem and remains committed to its mandate.
“We are not simply a media house; we are a public trust platform and a strategic national asset. Our mandate extends beyond programming. It encompasses national identity formation, democratic participation, cultural preservation, economic dialogue and information equity.
“As the country’s public service broadcaster, we are entrusted to inform, educate and entertain; to promote unity; and to provide a platform for inclusive national discourse that advances Vision 2030 and Zimbabwe’s broader development aspirations,” he said.
