The government has recapitalised the Ghana Broadcasting Corporation (GBC) to the tune of 32 million Euros for both its transmission and studio equipment. The equipment, which is currently being installed at the Accra station of the corporation and expected to be completed by the end of July this year, will improve the general performance of radio and television reception in the country. The acting Director-General of the GBC, Mr Yaw Owusu-Addo, disclosed this to the Daily Graphic in Accra during an open day organised by the corporation as part of this year's World Press Freedom Day. He said the other GBC sister stations in the country would have their share of the equipment to improve their performance. “Currently, we are using old analogue equipment in our make-shift studios and the coming in of the new equipment is a big relief to us,” he said. Highlighting on GBC’s open day celebration, Mr Owusu-Addo said the purpose was to offer members of the public the opportunity to acquaint themselves with the operations of the station, as well as see the now obsolete equipment which had been used in the 72-year history of the GBC. “It is also to offer an opportunity to the public to understand and appreciate the role GBC played and continues to play in the socio-economic development of the country," he said. Touching on some of the achievements of the organisation, the acting director-general pointed out that it was the only media organisation in the country which reached the wider public through its mass communication. He also recalled the 1960s when the mass infection of the swollen shoot disease impacted negatively on cocoa production in the country, saying that at that time it was only GBC, which championed the educational campaign for cocoa farmers to protect their produce against the disease. He added that Rural Radio Forums (RRFs) were also organised by GBC for people in the rural areas to come together to be educated on topical issues at that time through the then radio box. "GBC is an instrument for mobilising resources for rural development and the role of GBC will always be relevant," he stressed. Credit: Daily Graphic