Tanzania Migrates to Digital Terrestrial TV Broadcasting

TANZANIA has successfully switched off analogue and migrated to digital terrestrial television broadcasting.

The East African country has switched off analogue television two years earlier than the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) deadline of June 17, 2015.

Tanzanian Minister of Communication, Science, and Technology Makame Mbarawa said this in Dar-es-Salaam yesterday.

This was when Zambia's Information and Broadcasting Services Deputy Minister, Mwansa Kapeya paid a courtesy call on him at his office.

Mr Kapeya is leading a delegation of experts on study tours of Tanzania and Kenya on digital migration.

The Zambian delegation includes Director Press and Planning Beaton Kaluba, Digital Migration National Task force chairperson Sydney Mupeta, Zambia Information and Communication Authority (ZICTA) Director of Information Communication and Technology (ICT) Patrick Mutimushi and Zambia National Broadcasting Corporation (ZNBC) Director of Engineering Malolela Lusambo.

Mr Mbarawa said Tanzania migrated to digital terrestrial television broadcasting on December 31, last year.

He said December 31, 2012 was the deadline given by the East African community for member countries to migrate.

He said with this successful migration to digital terrestrial television broadcasting, Tanzania becomes the first country in the East African region to switch off analogue.

Mr Kapeya said the Zambian delegation was in the country to learn how preparations for digital migration were done.

He said the team decided to visit Tanzania having received information that the East African country had successfully migrated.

He said the team was expected to visit Kenya on a similar assignment.

Zambia is set to switch to the terrestrial television broadcasting platform and according to Information Permanent Secretary Amos Malupenga, Zambia would meet the ITU deadline of June 15, 2015.

(Source: Times of Zambia via allAfrica.com)