Malawi Communications Regulatory Authority (Macra) has disclosed that it is in the process of amending licences so that licensees should have an obligation to roll out to all underserved areas.
Macra Board Chairperson Dr Stanley Khaila disclosed this during a Broadcasting Conference held on Tuesday in Lilongwe.
He said part of the Authority’s mission is to be a world class regulator which will be achieved using up-to-date regulations and equipment in the operations.
Macra Board Chairperson Dr Stanley Khaila opening Broadcasting Conference in Lilongwe
.”We are currently drafting broadcasting regulations that have considered new trends in broadcasting,” he said.
Khaila reminded broadcasters that payment of licence fees is a requirement for having a broadcasting licence therefore the fees should always be paid.
He urged Broadcasters to adhere to licence conditions to avoid penalties or sanctions that the authority enforces to bring sanity to the industry.
Khaila also announced during the conference that the Authority is in the process of procuring state-of-the-art broadcasting monitoring machine to enable effective monitoring and enforcement.
Participants at the Broadcasting Conference in Lilongwe
A representative of broadcasters, Father David Niwagaba, said as broadcasters, they are expecting to have the broadcasting that is uninterrupted.
“The signal of interruption takes a long time and this should be discussed and addressed,” he said.
He therefore commended Macra for work it is doing for putting broadcasters in order.
