The Ministry of Communication has denied reports that it has decided to hand over the management of the DTT infrastructure and platform to Chinese firm StarTimes.
“The ministry wishes to state emphatically that it has, in no way, committed to, and does not intend to hand over the management of the Digital Terrestrial Television (DTT) infrastructure platform to any third party.
“The DTT infrastructure platform shall be managed as a commercial entity incorporated as the central Digital Transmission Company Limited (CDTCL) governed by a board (Representatives from GIBA, TNX Creative Arts Industry and contents Producers, MoF, MoC, the CEO of the
It added: “The selection of a contractor and financing options for any aspect of the project ought not to be interpreted as an intention to hand over the ownership and management of the platform to any third partyâ€.
The statement comes on the heels of suspicions raised by the Ghana Independent Broadcasters Association (GIBA) that a separate deal between the ministry and the Chinese firm to extend satellite TV to over 300 villages across the country, is being used a conduit to hand over the DTT platform to StarTimes to the detriment of local operators.
“Whereas today, China does not allow foreign ownership of media and for that matter, will not allow the African broadcast media the space to trade our African channels in their country, why then should African states give our broadcast space in the fashion as we are experiencing at the momentâ€, GIBA wondered.
The Ministry of Communications will on September 26 launch the commencement of the nationwide ‘300 village satellite TV project’.
The ceremony will be held at Akweibu Basic School in Dansoman, the first beneficiary village in the Greater Accra Region.
The project is in line with the government of Ghana’s commitment to bridging the digital divide between the rural and urban areas, the ‘300 village satellite TV project’ is expected to benefit 6,000 households drawn from 300 villages nationwide.
StarTimes involvement in Ghana
The government first signed a $95 million deal with the StarTimes to supply and install the Digital Terrestrial Television network platform for Ghana in 2012.
But the contract with Startimes was later abrogated over the failure of the company to secure the necessary funding from the China Exim Bank to execute the project.
The government then awarded the digital migration contract to K-Net, a Ghanaian-owned company.
As K-Net worked on the project, StarTimes sued the government of Ghana claiming an unfair abrogation of their contract with the State.