In Yaoundé, 66 radios are broadcasting without a valid license. This was revealed by Minette Libom Li Likeng (Minister of Posts and Telecommunications) during a workshop on the regulation of radio frequencies, organized from 14 to 15 October 2020, in Yaounde for about forty journalists and radio owners.  

According to an official of the Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications (MINPOSTEL), only 20 frequency bands are available in Yaoundé and about a dozen of them are already in use. Therefore, the high number of radios and the lawless use of the frequencies cause frequency overload and interference, the official added.

To remedy this, the Minpostel (through the technical support of the Telecommunications Regulatory Agency-ART), plans to use new tools that meet the requirements of throughput and coverage without signal interference. This includes the digital sound broadcasting system.

Meanwhile, for the sake of the Cameroonian principle of administrative tolerance, most radio owners are now operating with a provisional broadcasting authorization granted by the Ministry of Communication. The ART will later set a frequency band for them whereas under the law of December 21, 2010, governing electronic communications in Cameroon, they are liable for a 1-month to a 1-year prison sentence as well as fines ranging between XAF1,000,000 and XAF5,000,000.

D.M.