SECTOR 3 3.1 Broadcasting legislation has been passed and is implemented that provides for a conducive environment for public, commercial and community broadcasting. The Broadcasting Act of 1998, which was repealed in 2012, allowed for three types of broadcasters: private, public and community broadcasters. The new framework under the Communications Regulatory Act of 2012, which established the BOCRA, only allows for two types of broadcasters: commercial broadcasters and state broadcasters. Public broadcasters were replaced with state broadcasters while community broadcasters were scrapped entirely. The decision to exclude community broadcasters ‘stems from a debate that had been going on a long time ago’ and by 2012 not a single community broadcaster had been granted a licence. The argument that was put forward at the time was: ‘look at what happened in Rwanda.’ Government linked community radios to the genocide in Rwanda and were able to argue that the same could happen in Botswana. Thus, they were able to explain the exclusion of community radios in the legislation by arguing that community radio stations could influence their listeners into tribal conflicts. The adoption of the 2012 law ‘was a deliberate effort’ to restrict the broadcasting environment. ‘The only media that is regulated by BOCRA right now is Gabz FM, Yarona FM, Duma FM and eBotswana.’ Scores: Individual scores: 1 Country does not meet indicator 2 Country meets only a few aspects of indicator 3 Country meets some aspects of indicator 4 Country meets most aspects of indicator 5 Country meets all aspects of the indicator Average score: 40 AFRICAN MEDIA BAROMETER BOTSWANA 2018 ✓ ✓ ✓✓ ✓ ✓✓✓ ✓ 2.4 (2005 = 1.8; 2007 =1.7; 2009 = 1.1; 2011 = 2.0; 2014 - 1.7) ✓✓