By Isatou NG Camara
The Minister of Information, Media and Broadcasting Services has announced plan to start the next phase of the eleven million Euro infrastructure for Digital Terrestrial Transmission project.
He made this announcement last week during the first press conference of the New Year 2025 of the Ministry’s monthly press conference. Wednesday’s presser featured institutions under the purview of the Ministry of Information, Media, and Broadcasting Services such as The Gambia Radio and Television Services (GRTS), Gambia Printing and Publishing Cooperation (GPPC), and Digital Gambia Limited (DGL). They all updated the public on their achievements and challenges in 2024 as well as plans for 2025.
Minister Ceesay began by highlighting the Ministry’s key achievements in 2024 in fulfillment of its mandate to ensure proactive disclosure and to popularise government agenda.
He mentioned the Ministerial Town hall or ‘Mansakunda’, a new initiative open to the public to ask public service officials questions regarding their sectors. “It is a programme that features ministers from various sectors of the government together with their sector heads and provides information on their ministries to the public”.
Dr Ceesay also mentioned other public engagements the ministry has embarked on such as monthly press conferences, radio programmes with ministers. He said there are plans to engage in community outreaches, and town hall meetings across the country. “Last year, we presented Data Privacy and Protection Bill at the National Assembly which is currently awaiting approval. This is a key step towards enhancing Data Governance,” he stated.
He mentioned that the Ministry facilitated the appointment of Access to Information (ATI) Commissioners and is also working on operationalising the secretariat so that it can become fully functional.
“As a ministry, we collaborated with National Democratic Institution (NDI), and other partners to provide capacity building programmes and trainings to senior government officials, Information Officers and journalists particularly young journalists across the country. And we worked with Freedom House to provide internship opportunity for 30 student journalists at The University of The Gambia for three months. The first batch has been oriented. One of the visions of the ministry is to ensure that, we create a reservoir of professional, competent, ethical journalists in this country. If we do not have that we are in trouble. Information is powerful and those handling it should know how to handle the information better”.
Highlighting plans for 2025, the Information Minister mentioned the formulation of the Information Media and Broadcasting Bill, finalizing the ministry’s strategic plan 2025, weekly ministerial Mansakunda program, maintain the monthly press conferences and increase the frequency of The Gambia Daily news publication at least twice a week to serve the public.
Lamin Saidykhan, the General Manager of Gambia Digital Limited explained the infrastructure for Digital Terrestrial Transmission project seeks to change the transmission of television information from analog to digital. He said it involves putting up an infrastructure to provide nationwide coverage called the ‘Digital Trusted Television Transmission Platform”.
