Government has set March 2016 as the new deadline for migration from terrestrial analogue television to Digital Terrestrial Television (DTT) in the country.
Deputy Minister of Communications, Ato Sarpong, who made the announcement in Accra at an ECOWAS regional workshop to discuss issues relating to the planning and utilization of the digital dividend in the sub-region, also proposed the same deadline for other ECOWAS members that have not made the migration.
The objective of the workshop, attended by representatives from Togo, Sierra Leone, Nigeria, Benin, Guinea and Cote d'Ivoire, among others, was to review the status of the DTT implementation in ECOWAS member states and exchange ideas on the best practices to maximize the economic and social benefits of the digital dividend, among others.
According to Mr. Sarpong, the government had selected K-NET Limited, a wholly Ghanaian-owned digital firm, as the new vendor for the migration process, replacing StarTimes Limited.
The migration from analogue to DTT, which has been in the planning stages for several years will comprise three phases, the minister indicated.
He said the migration will begin in the Greater Accra and Ashanti regions by October 31st this year.
He added that 'the Northern, Upper West, Upper East, Volta regions must come on stream by 31st December, 2015.
'Eastern, Central, Brong Ahafo and Western regions will come on stream on March 31st, 2016 as per the conditions of the contract between Government and K-NET Limited.'
'This is the roadmap in the contract that we are about to sign with the new vendor with clear penalties for breaches and all of that,' he stated.
According to him, K-NET Limited is to start work on the migration process this week to ensure that the 2016 deadline is met.
Mr. Sarpong disclosed that funding needed to execute the project is available, adding that payment, per the new agreement, would be made to vendors as and when they execute a particular phase of the project and not like government is going to source for loan to undertake the project.'
The initial deadline for the digital migration in the country and across the sub-region was December 2014, but Mr. Sarpong told BUSINESS GUIDE that no member of ECOWAS has been able to fully migrate into the digital space partly due to challenges related to funding.
The migration is expected to free more spectrums for use by mobile telecommunication operators in the country and the sub-region to enable them provide better services to clients.
With funding still a major challenge for most of the countries, some members might not even be able to meet the 2016 deadline if they agree to the proposal.
Meanwhile, Director-General of National Communications Authority (NCA), William Tevie has indicated that Ghana has instituted a conformance regime to ensure DTT receivers to be imported into the country conform to the minimum specifications developed by ECOWAS.
To ensure compliance with the legislation, he said, 'Ghana has currently accredited 14 laboratories and over 100 Integrated Digital Television sets and Set Top Boxes have been certified to conform to the DTT minimum specification.'
By Kevin Trevellyan & Melvin Tarlue
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