Somali National Television (Telefishinka Qaranka Soomaaliyeed, SNTV) launched operations in 1983 with funding from abroad. In 2011, the station was relaunched after a break of 20 years since the fall of President Siad Barre in 1991. The station was designed as an information alternative to fight propaganda from the government’s Islamist opponents, the organization Al Shabab. SNTV’s programming is available to people in Somalia as well as abroad (where it is accessible via satellite).
Media assets
Television: SNTV
State Media Matrix Typology: State-Controlled (SC)
Ownership and governance
SNTV is owned by the federal government of Somalia. The broadcaster is registered as a state-owned corporation. It is accountable to the Ministry of Information, Culture and Tourism, which appoints its management and makes all key decisions relevant for the SNTV’s operation. The station is presented on the ministry’s site as a ministry department.
Source of funding and budget
There is no information about the budget of SNTV. According to local journalists and media experts specialized in Somalia, SNTV is fully funded by the government. The station has also benefited in the past decades from a slew of grants from foreign donors, money that was used mostly to upgrade the station’s facilities and equipment as well as to train its journalists.
Editorial independence
In spite of numerous programs supported by foreign broadcasters and governments aimed at improving the capacity of SNTV, the broadcaster remains a tightly state-controlled media outlet. Top officials directly calling the station’s managers and asking for specific changes in their coverage is common in Somalia, according to local journalists and foreign experts specializing in Somalia.
There is no domestic statute and no independent mechanism to validate the editorial independence of SNTV.
September 2023