BY MFANUFIKILE KHATHWANE
LOBAMBA – Eswatini Television (ETV) is pursuing a long-term solution to recover more than E9.2 million in outstanding television licence fees, with plans underway to partner with the Eswatini Revenue Service (ERS) to strengthen collections and improve revenue generation.
This emerged during a Public Accounts Committee (PAC) sitting with the Ministry of Information, Communications and Technology and its parastatals on Thursday, June 25, 2026, chaired by Deputy Speaker Madala Mhlanga.
According to the Auditor General’s report, ETV is owed E9.2 million in television licence fees that were expected to be collected within a short period of less than a year. The report raised concerns that delays in recovering the debt increase the risk of non-payment and may point to weaknesses in the current collection system.
The report further noted a significant increase in provisions for bad debts, with E7.6 million representing 57 percent of the amount owed to ETV classified as potentially unrecoverable. The current year’s doubtful debts alone exceed E7 million.
Responding to the concerns, ETV Chief Financial Officer Simise Mamba said the broadcaster was in discussions with ERS to establish a sustainable collection mechanism for annual television licence renewals.
“We are working towards making ERS the collection agency for television licences to improve compliance and revenue collection,” she said.
Mamba also revealed that ETV’s Board had approved the creation of a Business Development Manager position aimed at driving revenue generation and strengthening the broadcaster’s financial position.
“We expect to see positive results in the coming year,” she said.
Deputy Speaker Madala Mhlanga sought clarity on whether the proposed arrangement with ERS would also assist in recovering outstanding debts. In response, Mamba confirmed that some debt recovery cases were already before the legal office and were yielding positive results.
She said the planned collaboration with ERS would also target historical licence fee arrears. Under the proposed system, individuals seeking certain ERS services could first be required to clear outstanding television licence debts, thereby improving recovery rates.
PAC Member Ntando Mkhonta raised concerns about the affordability of television licences, arguing that many emaSwati struggle to pay while local programming remains limited.
However, Mamba said the latest assessment by the Eswatini Communications Commission (ESCCOM) showed that local content on ETV had reached 70 percent. She cited productions such as Ekhaya Season 2 and the recently launched Asibambaneni Sibe Ngumndeni Season 2 as examples of efforts to increase local programming.
Meanwhile, MP Mzwandile Mamba acknowledged that many citizens may have outstanding television licence obligations and welcomed measures aimed at improving compliance. Members of the committee also supported the proposal to link television licence payments to access to certain government services, including tax clearance certificates.
The initiative is expected to strengthen ETV’s revenue base while improving the collection of licence fees owed to the national broadcaster.
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