Africa-Press – Botswana. The television and film industry will have the much-needed boost when the refurbishment at the Mass Media Auditorium is completed by the end of December.
When giving the State of the Nation Address (SONA) at the Parliament building yesterday, President Mokgweetsi Masisi explained that the transformation and building of mass media is almost near complete.
“The refurbishment aimed at transforming the Mass Media Auditorium into a hub for local film and television production, are expected to be completed by the end of December 2022,” Masisi said.
“The objective is to support and capacitate the creative industry to protect their literary and artistic works; designs; images; creative products; innovations; filming and photography, thereby generating income from their Intellectual Property. The project will also commercialise the creative sector and include Batswana in the wildlife and tourism filming and photography industry,” Masisi further said.
According to Masisi, the transitioning from the analogue to digital terrestrial transmission has resulted in the establishment of three Btv Channels with a policy of 80 percent local and 20 percent,
“Furthermore, funding has been provided to capacitate our people for television and content production, especially for the youth. “
According to Masisi, another milestone from government is the establishment of the National Arts Council of Botswana set to unlock potential in the Creative Industry.
“During the 2021/2022 financial year, P80 million was disbursed through the Youth Development Fund to support youth entrepreneurship development. This resulted in the creation of 1,320 jobs for the youth. In this regard, government has also developed land parcels for use as incubation sites to sharpen their entrepreneurial skills,” the President stated.
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