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Farirai Machivenyika-Senior Reporter 

The wait is over.

Following its official launch at a glitzy ceremony last week, local news and entertainment television channel Zimpapers Television Network Prime goes live today on DStv Channel 294

ZTN Prime is part of multi-media giant Zimpapers and will be accessed by customers on DStv Premium, Compact Plus, Compact, Access and Lite bouquet. 

ZTN Prime general manager Ms Nomsa Nkala said the channel will offer “purely Zimbabwean content with a fresher outlook”.

Ms Nomsa Nkala

“People should look forward to purely Zimbabwean content with a fresher outlook, Zimbabwean stories that are told differently, stories that are different but relatable globally. So this is the approach that we have taken as ZTN Prime,” she said.

Ms Nkala said viewers should be able to watch ZTN Prime from wherever they are in the world and still relate to the content.

ZTN Prime’s programming ranges from news and current affairs, to drama, sport, exclusive interviews and so many more.

Speaking during the official launch last week, Information, Publicity and Broadcasting Services Minister, Monica Mutsvangwa said the coming in of ZTN Prime was a testimony of the Second Republic’s commitment to reforms and opening up the airwaves.

“This is a phenomenal trademark of the Second Republic. This constitutional benchmark of this dispensation also makes Zimbabwe an optimal destination for capital. 

“Therefore, I task ZTN to tell the authentic Zimbabwean story. ZTN is there to chart a new chapter of digital broadcasting. In the domain of broadcasting, it will strive to salivate the hunger for content for a nation which is blessed with so much talent.”

The minister said the launch of ZTN Prime offered more opportunities to those in the arts industry.

“What it means is that content creators will then have a chance to really do a good job and to be rewarded well for the job they do. This is a big achievement. Zimbabweans at home and abroad will have a chance to show their talent to the global world,” she said.

Zimpapers Group chief executive officer Mr Pikirayi Deketeke said the launch of the channel was a culmination of years of hard work and was a response to changes in preferences by audiences from purely print formats to other formats like video, radio and digital.