Govt needs to have a second look at the saturation of foreign content on our airwaves - Dzifa Gomashie

• Dzifa Gomashie is calling on the president to come up with measures to open the borders to facilitate easy trade

• She lamented that the saturation of foreign content is curtailing job opportunities for the youth in the country

• She was of the view that government must review the policy on 30% foreign contents on the airwaves in the country

Former Minister for Tourism Culture and Creative Arts, Dzifa Gomashie, has stated that government needs to review the policy on media contents with regards to the saturation of foreign contents on the country’s airwaves.

The Member of Parliament for Ketu South made this known while addressing the august house at the first sitting of the second meeting of parliament on May 25, 2021.

“I want to urge this house and this country to take a second look at the ways in which we allow foreign contents on our airwaves. What kind of opportunities is there for our young people and the growth of our sector if we do not measure the level of information that we rely on our television stations? Specifically, all the TV stations in our country now, do not limit themselves on the 70% of the content from Ghana and 30% of foreign content,” she said.

The MP noted that most of the foreign content shown on local TV stations do not add value to the Ghanaian culture adding that job opportunities for the youth are being stifled while creativity goes to waste.

“Today everybody is showing some kind of telenovela that is not adding any value to the culture, the arts and heritage that we seek to preserve for the people. We are squeezing out the job opportunity for our young people if we do not take measures to address this situation.”

Dzifa Gomashie also advocated for the need to have the borders opened to facilitate trade activities among other West African countries.

“Mr Speaker, 12 years after the AU was formed, the ECOWAS came into being, allowing us free movement of goods and people, I dare say that in the wake of COVID-19, we have not been able to do much. I want to use this opportunity to appeal to his Excellency the president of the Republic of Ghana to look at border communities in our country and the adverse effect of the closure of the borders. I think that if we are able to put in place protocols to open the airport, I think the same can be done for the borders,” she noted.