Private radio stations to be licensed for the first time

Ethiopia is to issue its first-ever private radio broadcasting licences in the next two months, Bereket Simon, the information minister, told IRIN on Monday. The licences, he added, would be issued ahead of the 2005 elections that analysts say will be a litmus test of the government’s commitment to democracy. "We are coming near to the elections, and the government is ready to provide all groups running for office access to the public," the minister said. "It is a basic right of all citizens." He added that the licences to operate private radio stations would be released according to government regulations. Currently, the only legal television and radio broadcasting organisations are state-owned. The decision has been welcomed as a significant step by the 13-year-old coalition government, towards relaxing its grip on the country's fledgling media. It would also enable the public to play a greater role in the democratisation process under way in the country, analysts in the region told IRIN. Ethiopia’s ruling party – the Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF) – has often been criticised for its alleged tight grip on the media. Critics have also questioned the government's commitment to free the country’s broadcasting sector, noting that licensing laws were passed as long as five years ago - in June 1999. Government officials argue that there is a flourishing private press, and that the issuing of the licences will further free the broadcasting sector since the EPRDF came to power in 1991. Bereket insisted that because the country had never enjoyed private radio or television in its history, private broadcasting was a relative "unknown". He said: "This has been delayed because it is an unknown area, and the government does not have previous experience in terms of opening up its airwaves." As soon as the licences were issued, he added, private broadcasting companies could launch their programmes. Berhanu Nega, who sits on the board of the five-year-old Addis Broadcasting Company (ABC), said ABC planned to be on air two months after obtaining its licence. He noted that although the details of the licences had yet to be worked out – including how much they would cost – his company was already constructing a studio. He added that whereas it was true that the government had earlier pledged to issue licences, he remained optimistic that this latest announcement meant it would finally happen. He said (opening up) radio would play a key role in a country with high levels of illiteracy and and entrenched oral culture. "The most important way information is transmitted is through broadcasting," Berhanu told IRIN. "So radio is a crucially important step," he said, adding that new private broadcasters would make it possible for a plethora of views to be aired, a development which would be important during the forthcoming elections due to he held in less than a year's time. "The only way that the public can engage politically and use its right to vote effectively is when it is informed about issues. Unless that is made available to the public through radio and the television, you cannot talk about free and fair elections," Berhanu told IRIN. "This is a very significant development."