Some five hundred villages in Cote d’Ivoire will have access to digital terrestrial television (DTT) thanks to a People’s Republic of China project called “Access to satellite television for 10,000 African villages,” launched Thursday in Abidjan.
The launch of this project took place during a ceremony attended by the Ivorian Minister of Communication and Media Sidi Tiémoko Touré and the Chinese Ambassador to Cote d’Ivoire Wan Li.
This programme, entrusted to the international media group StarTimes by the Chinese authorities, will allow each beneficiary village to be equipped with two solar-powered projectors, a digital solar-powered television set and a satellite reception system for 20 families, free of charge.
“StarTimes is honored to be entrusted by the Chinese government with this project. We will do our best not to fail to allow remote populations to have access to digital television,” the company’s vice-president Pang Xinxing promised. For his part, Minister Sidi Touré considered that this initiative will help reducing the “digital divide” in the country.
With a total cost of $215.87 million, this project, initiated by Chinese President Xi Jinping as part of the Sino-African cooperation, will benefit 10,112 villages in 23 African countries.
Founded in 1988, StarTimes was established in Africa in 2002. Now, the group, through its many subsidiaries, has gradually started operating digital television in 30 African countries.
LB/ls/lb/Dng/APA