China-aided project helps 100,000 people in rural Uganda access satellite TV

WAKISO, Uganda, Oct. 16 (Xinhua) -- China on Saturday officially completed the installation of the satellite television project in 900 Ugandan villages that face connectivity challenges.

Chris Baryomunsi, Ugandan minister of Information, Communication, Technology and National Guidance, officiated at the handover ceremony held in Katabi village in the central Ugandan district of Wakiso. He praised China for its technical support to Uganda, noting that the support will drive development in communities.

Aoge Mengdai, chief executive officer of StarTimes Uganda, the project contractor, said 900 villages have been connected to satellite television service since 2018 when the project was executed. And more than 100,000 people in 18,000 households, 2,700 schools and health centers have access to satellite television.

StarTimes is a Chinese pay-TV company.

"The benefits are beyond simply accessing TV. These children can now access television learning and video demonstrations which are very useful in practical learning. They can also compare with other schools outside their community," Mengdai said.

He added that adults can now access key health and commercial information, as well as benchmark their dreams against other developing communities.

At the Johannesburg Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) held in South Africa in 2015, the Chinese government pledged to provide satellite television for 10,000 African villages.