SECTOR 2 In general, newspapers arrive late on the day of publication, or the following day, in semi-urban/rural areas. In more remote rural areas, print media is not available. Nation Publications’ Fuko Nation is aimed specifically at rural areas. Access to newspapers in Malawi is limited by the fact that most of them are published in English, a language in which a small percentage of the population are literate. Broadcasting There are 24 radio stations in Malawi and of these, there are two state-owned radio stations - Malawi Broadcasting Corporation (MBC) 1 and 2. More than any other broadcaster, these stations are virtually national, reaching about 95 percent of the country, “if all the transmitters and other equipment are working”. Border areas in particular tend to have partial or even no local broadcast reception. There are eight private, commercial radio stations, some like Capital Radio, Zodiak and Joy Radio, which cover most of the country’s three regions, while others broadcast to specific areas within the country. Galaxy FM, owned by the daughter of the former President Bingu wa Mutharika, was launched in early 2012. Two of these private radio stations in particular, Zodiak and Capital Radio, are “giving MBC a run for its money”, as they are starting to be seen as more credible sources of news. Zodiak broadcasts in English and Chichewa and is usually the station to broadcast the latest news. There are 14 community radio broadcasters in Malawi, eight of which are religious in nature. Most broadcast specifically to a small geographical community, although Radio Islam, Transworld Radio and Radio Maria broadcast within all the three regions. Radio Maria has the second biggest reach after MBC and its listenership is very wide. BBC Radio is also relayed to all three districts. In terms of television, the arena is dominated by the state broadcaster, MBC Television, which reaches most of the country. There are also three religious TV stations, with a much smaller reach, including the new broadcaster, AFJ. The satellite subscription service from South Africa, DSTV, is also available in Malawi, although most Malawians cannot afford this service. In July 2012, the government issued nine new broadcasting licences to community/religious radio stations, and 11 licences to private and community television stations. These new players have been given 12 months to set up, and by August 2012 only AFJ was already operational. Some of these new stations will be national, while others will be regional or community. Mobile phones and internet Most Malawians use their mobile phones, rather than computers, to access the internet. The International Telecommunications Union (ITU) 2011 statistics show AFRICAN MEDIA BAROMETER MALAWI 2012 27