Story by Jerold Sasa
THE Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation (ZBC) has declared its readiness to meet the nation’s information needs as Zimbabwe transitions from NDS1 to NDS2, pledging to ensure that every corner of the country has access to reliable information.
This commitment was underscored during the National Broadcasters’ Strategic Planning Workshop, currently underway in Mutoko.
Over the next five days, the ZBC Board and management will engage in strategic deliberations to define the broadcaster’s direction for the next five years.
ZBC Board Chairman, Ms Helliate Rushwaya, says the broadcaster aims to meet the aspirations and expectations of NDS2, following the success of NDS1, where ZBC played a critical role in delivering information to the people.
“We are here in Mutoko, where we are gathered for our strategic planning workshop, and we are strategising on how we are placing ourselves as a critical player as the nation transitions from NDS1 to NDS2. We want to make sure we respond to its aspirations by taking information to the people,” she said.
ZBC CEO, Mr Sugar Chagonda, says the national broadcaster is ready to ensure NDS2 is a success and is already putting measures in place to fulfill its mandate.
“As a national broadcaster and a critical player in the broadcasting ecosystem, we are already testing our machinery as we prepare for NDS2 because we don’t want anyone to be starved of what is happening around the country. We should also make sure we support all government programs as the government moves to transform lives under its development agenda,” he said.
The workshop comes shortly after ZBC concluded its customer satisfaction survey, which provided insights into audience expectations.
“We have just concluded our customer satisfaction survey, and we want to make improvements on what our audiences pointed out. We also want to ensure we get to every corner of Zimbabwe, bringing quality programming as we leave no one and no place behind,” Ms Rushwaya said.
“We are seized with coming up with programs which answer to the expectations of our people, bearing in mind that gone are the days when zbc was the only source of news, as we now have other competing news outlets, so we are competing with,” Mr Chagonda said.
As a key player in the country’s broadcasting ecosystem, the decisions made by ZBC management and staff over the next five days in Mutoko will play a significant role in shaping the sector, particularly as the government has recently gazetted the Broadcasting Amendment Act.
