Should SABC Look Into Renaming The SABC Education Channel Perhaps To SABC Variety 2?

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Since 1996, SABC Education had been a trademark the public broadcaster would incorporate on local content geared mainly at the youth aged 2-14 and overtime aged 18-49. It is home to shows like Geleza Nathi, Uzalo, Matric Reloaded, Skeem Saam, Takalani Sesame and TOMZ.

It currently operates as a 24 hour channel on SABC's DTT alongside SABC 1-3, SABC Lehae, SABC Variety, SABC Sport and their 19 radio stations. Other means of accessing the channel or its content is through SABC+ and for those without these option can view its content on SABC 1-3.

This channel was launched amidst covid as a Mindset oriented brand offering various lessons from the Department Of Education on top of the already existing Geleza Nathi and Matric Reloaded. That left little variety for SABC's other shows like Words And Numbers and Hectic Nine-9.

Since then a lot of restructuring was done to incorporate a lot more of the SABC with the inclusion of Skeem Saam and non-educational shows like Restyle My Style and Challenge SOS but then again I get why these are on.

SABC Education is youth oriented and the SABC hadn't really produced much content in this area but the inclusion of Afro Cafe and Speak Out falls out of that spectrum. This was a channel that should be pivoting toward what it is positioned for education yet there's music shows on there.

Often the public broadcaster would rebrand the channel to SABC Festival as if there weren't consumers actually watching the channel and leaving the space occupied by SABC Variety unhinged. Considering there's already content under SABC Education not viewable on the channel like Uzalo.

Yet there's space for current affairs, the public broadcaster should consider restructuring or revamping the channel perhaps into SABC Variety 2. The first channel may as well occupy shows like Uzalo and Giyani: Land Of Blood while the other offers Skeem Saam and Noot Vir Noot.