President John Dramani Mahama has proposed the introduction of a Public Media Levy to replace the long-standing TV Licence system, describing the move as a more efficient and sustainable way of funding public broadcasting in Ghana.
The proposal is aimed at modernising the financing of state-owned media in response to changing media consumption patterns and persistent challenges with TV licence compliance.
According to Mahama, the proposed levy would ensure predictable funding for public media institutions while reducing the administrative burden associated with collecting individual TV licence fees.
“There are a few suggestions we have about the so-called TV licence. And I think that our thinking is going in the same direction to amend that law to make it a public media levy of some sort,”
“When we’re ready, we’ll be discussing at Cabinet, but we’ll discuss with you what our thinking is before we finally go to Parliament and amend the law,” he said during a visit to the Ghana Broadcasting Corporation (GBC).
He explained that the reform is intended to strengthen public broadcasting, enhance content quality, and safeguard editorial independence, while ensuring that the funding model reflects current technological and economic realities.
Source: peacefmonline.