MBABANE-Eswatini’s broadcasting landscape is set for a shake-up following the official handover of operating licences to Sakha Live FM and Icon Connect Radio.
The two stations were yesterday officially presented with their free-to-air commercial radio broadcasting service licences by the Eswatini Communications Commission (ESCCOM), marking a major step towards expanding the country’s radio broadcasting sector.
The licences were awarded following an invitation to apply published by ESCCOM in December 2025.
ESCCOM Acting Chief Executive Officer Ozzie Thakatha said the awarding of the licences marked an important milestone in the continued development and liberalisation of the broadcasting sector.
He said the entry of the two commercial broadcasters would bring greater diversity in content and programming, innovative approaches to broadcasting, increased audience engagement and a greater plurality of voices and opinions.
“We expect these new entrants to challenge conventional approaches, introduce fresh ideas, digital platforms and new technologies,” Thakatha said.
He said the stations would also create economic opportunities through the employment of journalists, presenters, producers, technicians, engineers, content creators, marketers and administrators.
According to Thakatha, the benefits would extend beyond the two broadcasters to the wider creative industry, including independent content producers, musicians, artists, filmmakers, advertising and marketing agencies, equipment suppliers and technology providers.
However, he reminded the new broadcasters that their licences came with significant public responsibilities.
Thakatha said the stations were required to comply with the Broadcasting Act 2023, applicable regulations and their licence conditions.
He said ESCCOM had already taken the two stations through their licence terms and conditions and would continue monitoring their compliance.
The regulator has given the stations 12 months from the date of the licence award to commence operations.
Thakatha warned that failure to start operating within the prescribed period could result in regulatory action, including possible revocation of the licences.
“We therefore encourage you to move with purpose. The work begins now,” he said.
Sakha Live promises a different approach
Sakha Live FM Managing Director Melusi ‘Zox’ Dlamini said the station was excited to finally receive its licence after years of preparation.
He said Sakha Live would be more than an entertainment platform, with a focus on connecting listeners, businesses and young people to opportunities.
“We can promise a platform that will not only entertain but connect listeners, connect business people, connect young people to real opportunities,” Dlamini said.
He said the station would also give people an opportunity to express different views while operating within the law.
Dlamini said Sakha Live would hold government accountable by going to communities to establish whether people were receiving the services and assistance they had been promised.
“We need to hold government accountable,” he said.
He said technology would allow the station to filter inappropriate content before it went on air while still creating room for differing views.
Dlamini said Sakha Live expected to be operational within about six months, despite the 12-month deadline given by ESCCOM.
The station plans to work with experienced journalists, citizen journalists and content creators rather than building a large permanent workforce.
Icon Connect targets radio gap
Icon Connect Radio, meanwhile, said it would adopt an urban metropolitan approach while seeking to bridge gaps in the country’s existing radio landscape.
One of its founders, Phila Dlamini, said the station would focus on lifestyle and entertainment while ensuring that rural communities were not excluded.
“We will try to bridge in those gaps and pockets with the traditional media that has been there before,” he said.
The station plans to have more than 30 presenters and will conduct a national recruitment drive when it is ready to begin operations.
Dlamini said Icon Connect would seek both trained professionals and people who had not attended tertiary institutions but possessed the necessary skills.
The station will feature music genres such as pop, soul and R&B and hip-hop, alongside lifestyle, health and other everyday topics.
Dlamini said Icon Connect also wanted to give local content providers, musicians and filmmakers opportunities to showcase and export their work beyond Eswatini.
“We will try to see if we can get content providers from within the country and try to also export what we are having within the country,” he said.
Speaking on behalf of the Ministry of ICT, Bongani Mkhaliphi, Senior Information Officer in the ministry, said the two stations should understand the gravity of the tools they had been given and use them cautiously and responsibly.
Thakatha said the awarding of the two licences did not mark the end of ESCCOM’s broadcasting licensing programme.
He said the Commission intended to facilitate further licensing opportunities across other categories, including community, subscription and online broadcasting, in accordance with the applicable regulatory framework.
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