Among the recommendations to come out of the fourth East African Media Summit in Nairobi was a call to establish a regional Swahili-language radio and television service.
The services were proposed by Kenyan Vice President Stephen Kalonzo Musyoka, and he called for them to be based in Arusha, Tanzania, where the East African Community secretariat is based.
The goal would be for Redio Afrika Mashariki and Televisheni Afrika Mashariki to have frequencies in all five East African Community nations — Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania and Uganda. The stations would highlight EAC integration issues and keep citizens informed and engaged with EAC matters.
Establishing such stations would be in line with the other resolutions adopted at the summit, many of which focused on the need for media to report on EAC institutions and initiatives to help educate citizens about the regional integration process.
