By: Bright Ntuli
The South African Broadcaster says that it needs a viable funding model to keep it financially stable.
In the 2024/2025 financial year, the public broadcaster reported a net loss of R253.3-million, up 28% from R197.8-million the year before.
At the heart of the problem is the SABC’s funding model, which relies heavily on TV licence fees and adverts.
The SABC chairperson, doctor Khathutshelo Ramukumba, has told Parliament’s standing committee on Appropriations that only 14% of South Africans pay their licences.
“The SABC is supposed to be collecting a range of R4.5 billion. We are only able to collect around R700 million a year, a fundamental shortfall which leaves a huge hole in the funding of that public services mandate,” says Ramukumba.
