€10m to refurbish new Orinfor premises

The public broadcasting office, Orinfor, will spend about 10 million Euros to refurbish its new facility in Kacyiru, Kigali, and acquire new broadcasting equipment, the agency’s technical director announced yesterday. Speaking to The New Times, Innocent Nkurunziza explained that the funds, which will be provided by the government, will see Orinfor acquire new Outside Broadcasting Vans for both radio and television. “We intend to acquire new broadcasting equipment such as OB-Vans for both radio and television, build two studios for television and six for radio and build a control room, all which will be digitalised,” Nkurunziza said in a telephone interview. Orinfor is scheduled to relocate to Kacyiru following the sale of its current premises in the city centre to Executive Investment Limited, a Kenyan real estate firm. The Kenyan firm acquired the 6,000 square-metre property in the Central Business District – which currently shelters both Rwanda radio and television – for Rwf 900 million to construct an eight-storey apartment building worth US$ 6 million. “We started the refurbishing works at the Kacyiru premises to accommodate the studios. We will also establish two channels–one for the government, and entertainment programmes mainly for the youth,” he added. The renovation of the former Kagera Basin Organisation headquarters in Kacyiru is being conducted by StudioTech, a Belgian Company. StudioTech is scheduled to complete the renovation exercise within nine months as per the contract, since last October when it won the tender. “There were some hiccups in the process, but we agreed with the investor [Executive Investment Limited] that we will vacate from our current premises in the city centre by August,” noted Nkurunziza. The Kenyan firm has already started ground construction activities at the site, demolishing part of the offices, which housed, among others, the marketing department. bosco.asiimwe@newtimes.co.rw

National

€10m to refurbish new Orinfor premises