Ghanaian regulator told to "stop radio stations from transcending their boundaries"

A project consultand, Nii Tackie Otoo, has called on Ghana's National Communication Authority (NCA) to enforce its regulations that prevent radio stations broadcasting beyond their boundaries. He said some radio stations were broadcasting beyond their boundaries because certain aspects of the NCA regulations, LI 1719 of 2003, were not proactive [sic].

He was speaking at a one-day workshop on "Radio Stations Broadcasting Beyond their Boundaries" organised by the Western Salem Communication, operators of Kyzz Fm, and the Business Sector Advocacy Challenge (BUSAC) Fund in Takoradi.

Nii Otoo said the regulation should be reviewed to ensure that radio stations that broadcast beyond their boundaries face stiff sanctions. The framework of the law, he said, must ensure a level playing field and fairness in the industry because well-established radio stations were overshadowing small ones. He suggested that radio stations and the NCA signed a memorandum of understanding so that the Authority could be held accountable when its regulations were flouted.

(Source: ModernGhana.com)

Andy Sennitt comments on http://blogs.rnw.nl/medianetwork/: This displays a lack of understanding about the basic laws of physics and insufficient technical planning. By definition, a radio station's coverage area cannot have "boundaries". The signal can't be turned on and off like a tap. What's needed is a licence which specifices a primary coverage area, and the required transmitter power calculated accordingly. It may be that a lack of regulations and/or monitoring and onsite inspections have led to some stations using transmitters which are far more powerful than they need to be. However, just because a station may be received well beyond the area for which it is licensed, that doesn't necessarily mean that it has flouted any regulations. Hopefully, the situation can be resolved without forcing stations off the air or making them pay crippling fines.