That notwithstanding, it is unlikely that the Board will make any marked changes to drafts handed down by the Board’s parent ministry. This undoubtedly, affects and compromises the Board’s overall independence. Digitisation Implementation of the digitisation programme continued to be hampered due to lack of funds way beyond the 17 June 2015 International Telecommunications Union’s (ITU), deadline for migration from analogue to digital broadcasting. This is notwithstanding the fact that the country also missed the Southern African Development Community’s (SADC) June 2016 deadline. The government has since extended the deadline to 2022. Completion of the exercise is critical in the licensing of more television stations thus breaking the state-controlled Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation’s monopoly in that sector (through Zimbabwe Television). This will most likely perpetuate the current situation where for example, community radio stations have gone unlicensed for the past 18 years since the enactment of the Broadcasting Service Act in 2001. Other Southern Africa Development Community (SADC) countries such as South Africa, Zambia and Malawi already have a plethora of community radio stations. Speaking during the induction of the Broadcasting Authority of Zimbabwe’s Board Members in November 2019, the Minister of Information, Publicity and Broadcasting Services, Monica Mutsvangwa, said 18 of 48 television transmitter sites were ready to transmit digital television signals under the Zimbabwe Digital Broadcasting Migration Project. She said government was now working on securing the requisite foreign currency to secure set top boxes. ❖ Mobile penetration/telecommunications According to the Postal and Telecommunications Regulatory Authority of Zimbabwe (POTRAZ), in its 2019 third quarter report, mobile data and Internet usage registered a 3.2% 22