Countries across the Pacific have now begun to receive a wide range of new television programmes from New Zealand.

The Pacific Broadcasting initiative, which was announced by New Zealand’s Prime Minister in September last year, is now distributing up to 8 hours per day of television programmes to Pacific nations.

“I am pleased that New Zealand sports, news, current affairs, documentaries and factual series are now available to local free-to-air stations, Tonga Broadcasting Commission and TVWAN (formerly DigiTV), to air,” said Sarah Walsh, New Zealand High Commissioner, in a joint statement from NZ Foreign Affairs and Trade, and PasifikaTV today.

“The New Zealand Government is proud to support this initiative...and we are grateful to the New Zealand and international content providers for their generosity in providing the content at no cost to the Pacific,” she stated.

“We want to continue to foster and develop the relationships we have with our Pacific Island neighbours. Showcasing our culture and identity through television is a great way to do this.”

In addition to sending New Zealand content, there is interest in using the service as a platform to rebroadcast local Pacific content.

As part of this initiative, there will also be a training programme for local technicians (i.e. camera operators, vision switchers and studio technicians), which is expected to help build skills across the region.

Pasifika TV content is available for the local free-to-air television stations, Tonga Broadcasting Commission and TVWAN, to air.