Southern African broadcasters launches news service link

The Southern African Broadcasting Association has introduced a news service link that will enable television and radio stations in the region to share content.

The association is a membership-based organization representing public service broadcasters and other broadcasting organizations in the Southern African Development Community region.

In a statement issued Monday by the association's secretary general, Ellen Nanuses, the link, SADCLINK, makes it possible for the broadcasters to access, upload and download content from wherever they will be.

Nanuses told Xinhua Tuesday that seven countries out of 14 have already started sharing information, while the rest are expected to be log in by end of May 2016.

The link was designed by a Namibian student, Sackie Shakufa, as part of his Masters' Degree Project in Science Technology and Innovation from the African Union Commission.

Shakufa said he designed the link to help broadcasters capture regional events instead of relying on broadcasters whose editorial policies do not seek to advance a positive African agenda.

Some of the information to be shared, Nanuses said, is about agriculture; entrepreneurship, innovation and technology.

"Africa is not a place of only miseries. There are lots of good stories that need to be told by our people to our people, thus SADCLINK is likely to change the status quo of story-telling and information-sharing in the region," she further said.

Nanuses said the link is a technological interface of open source software that allows for the sharing of audio and visual files.

"This technological innovation will help the region open up its borders and live in oneness with the rest of Africa," she said.

According to Nanuses, sharing stories will work because the region is the most cohesive and united politically, economically and historically, which are elements for development and democracy. Endit