National Community Radio Corporate Governance Indaba underway

Lusanda Bill
20 September 2012

The Minister of the Department of Communications Dina Pule earlier today addressed more than 200 delegates of community radio stations and stakeholders at the National Community Radio Corporate Governance Indaba in Limpopo.

Minister Dina Pule said government is working hard to improve the community programmes it has established.

Pule added that government is worried that the sector is as wobbly as ever despite the big financial support the sector is getting from government. This claim will be discussed by the delegates during the conference deliberations.

In South Africa there are over 150 community radio stations and around eight million listeners.

According to the Minister funds are not being accounted for and there is too much bickering between management and board members.

Minister Dina Pule emphasised that community radio stations belong to the community.  It is up to community radio stations to educate communities about different issues affecting people in the country.

The Minister Pule ended by saying that at the end of the conference a governing document must come out the Indaba that says AGM must be compulsory, each structure body that exists in community radio must report somewhere, in order to improve the sector.

National Community Radio Forum (NCRF) Secetary Patrick Kikine said he expects “serious financial support without exploitation and abuse by the government officials responsible for managing them”.