Govt reviewing ZNBC TV Levy Act

By Blessings Chibuye and Chansa Kunda

Government has announced that it is currently reviewing the Zambia National Broadcasting Corporation -ZNBC- TV Levy Act, to strengthen the financial sustainability of the institution.

ZNBC currently generates about 3.8 million Kwacha monthly from the TV levy and 9.5 million Kwacha from sales.

However ZNBC’s average monthly operational costs are at 20.2 million Kwacha.

Information and Media Minister CORNELIUS MWEETWA says the revenue combined still falls short of the institution’s monthly operational costs, resulting in a 6.7 million Kwacha deficit.

Mr MWEETWA was responding to Solwezi East Member of Parliament ALEX KATAKWE who wanted to know ZNBC’s financial viability and whether the current 5 Kwacha TV levy fee is sufficient to sustain its operations.

In response, Mr. MWEETWA acknowledged that the 5 Kwacha monthly levy is not sufficient to support ZNBC’s operational needs.