Information secretary Martuza Ahmed said community radio has ensured right of the common people to get information.
“This radio has added a new trend to the media by creating scope for neglected rural people to speak,” he said this on Wednesday while speaking at the opening session of a three-day seminar styled “Status and role of community radio in the SAARC region: community radio development for social justice and local development” here.
In cooperation with the information ministry, the SAARC Information Centre (SIC) and the World Association of Community Radio Broadcasters organized the seminar.
Joint-secretary of the information ministry Abul Hossain chaired the session while SAARC secretary general Abdul Motaleb Sarker and AMARC’s Asia-Pacific President Mica Lagman, among others, spoke at the event.
SIC director Laxmi Bilas Koirala delivered the welcome address while AMARC Asia-Pacific coordinator Suman Basnet gave vote of thank.
Speaking at the session as chief guest, the information secretary said the community radio has made the people aware of various important issues such as agriculture, gender, child health, adult education, maternity health care services, family planning and disaster management.
As a result, people have become aware of education, health care and gender equity and various social institutions, he said.
He said after coming to power, the government has given permission to set up 32 community radios as per its commitment to the people. Of them, 14 radios have already started broadcasting programmes, he added.
As the present government strongly believes in freedom of the press as per the constitution, it has passed ‘Right to Information Act 2009’ to ensure transparency, accountability and free flow of information in all sectors, said the information secretary.
Although the country has a state-run BTV and Betar, he said the government has given licenses to 42 private TV channels and 28 FM radios. There are also 1,200 dailies, weeklies, fortnightlies, monthlies and quarterlies in the country, he added.
Mortuza Ahmed said Bangladesh Betar broadcasts a total of 320-hour programmes daily through its different regional centres while Bangladesh Television (BTV) airs various socio-economic development and entertainment programmes. National news agency-Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha (BSS) provides various news of home and abroad, he said.
