The Mafwe Traditional Authority says the regional visit by NBC leadership demonstrates willingness to engage directly with its audience and strengthen relations with stakeholders.
A member of the Mafwe community, Josephine Mbanga, expressed, "To come all the way from Windhoek to Katima, to come and introduce yourself and introduce the way you will be working with our communities and the traditional leaders, for me I appreciate it very well, because I see that you are bringing an open door policy, and then it makes your communication very easy and very simple and very easily approachable."
The NBC Director General Menesia Muinjo highlighted the importance of involving audiences in the planning and development of content.
"in broadcasting what we do in terms of news and programmes, you cannot just broadcast without understanding what the needs of the listeners are, if it's radio, what the needs of the viewers are, and now social media."
The NBC team was encouraged to engage grassroots communities that are loyal consumers of NBC programmes across various platforms, particularly when sourcing content on heritage and culture.
Natamoyo of the Mafwe Traditional Authority, Patrick Kawana, also encouraged NBC to increase its coverage of traditional programmes and music.
Though the traditional authority welcomed the use of multiple languages on Ñwanyi FM, they want to know how various dialects can be represented.
"It is a great idea, because each language will be spoken and will be heard. This Khuta, for example, has seven languages used; all those seven languages should be heard and spoken on air."
Muinjo said the first phase involves consultations with the relevant authorities, and discussions will then follow on how various dilects can be incorporated.
The move will consider the corporation's current human capital before extending the search outside the organisation.
She added that knowledgeable individuals from the various language communities will be key to ensuring that the initiative is correctly implemented.
Muinjo appealed for continued support from the Traditional Authority throughout the process.