15 October 2013
The Department of International Relations and Cooperation will go live at 19:00 on Thursday with Ubuntu Radio, a 24-hour internet radio station aimed at enhancing communication on South Africa’s foreign policy.
Ubuntu Radio will be accessible via the internet at www.ubunturadio.com, with a target audience including both South Africans and the international community.
Spokesperson Clayson Monyela said in a statement last week that, through the station, the department sought to raise public awareness and stimulate public discourse on South Africa’s foreign policy.
Ubuntu Radio will have a talk radio format, he said, creating a platform for an exchange of views among opinion makers, think tanks, academics, scholars, students, diplomats and other players in the field of diplomacy and international relations.
With internet connectivity levels on the continent still lagging, the station will extend its reach by exchanging content for broadcast with identified media partners, including SABC’s Channel Africa and community radio stations.
Monyela said an internet-based radio station had been preferred to a mainstream radio station because of research indicating that internet-based radio had gained momentum over the past 10 years, with additional benefits including wider international reach.
The uniqueness of the station, according to Monyela, lies in the state-of-the-art technology that has gone into the creation of its website. It has an active web link to the department’s website – www.dirco.gov.za – extending access to social networks such as Facebook and Twitter, as well as to the department’s Diplomat and Ubuntu magazines.
“As a multimedia platform, Ubuntu is immediate, and will run live broadcasts of major department events, announcements, and campaigns,” Monyela said.
“This station will be a major source of reliable, recent and trusted news on South Africa’s foreign policy.”
SAinfo reporter
