Khayae FM is Myanmar’s first community radio station in Htantabin township near Yangon.

It broadcast its first regular live transmission on Sunday on 104.8 Mhz.

The station will air a live show every day from 2 to 4 pm on which will be repeated the following morning from 8 to 10 local time.

Khayae FM will broadcast programmes on agriculture, livestock breeding, health, education, entertainment and the daily news in Htantabin Township.

Germany’s DW Akademie has supported the establishment of Khayae FM since 2015. This is a pilot project agreed between DW Akademie and the Myanmar government.

Myanmar's Union Minister of Information Dr. Pe Myint spoke at the inauguration ceremony along with Germany's Ambassador to Myanmar, Dorothee Janetzke-Wenzel, the Social Affairs Minister of Yangon Region U Naing Ngan Lin, Michael Karhausen from DW in Bonn and U Kyaw Htay from the local Village Development Committee Federation which runs the radio.

Dr. Myint said that they are working towards transitioning from a state-owned media to community radio services, so that the voice of the people can resonate through them. The government has already launched several radio channels for ethnic people, and there will be more community radios in the future.

To realise freedom of speech and expression, existing laws have to be amended, and some time ago, it would have been against the law to broadcast a radio channel from a remote location such as Khayae FM. However, slowly these laws are being changed, said Dr. Pe Myint.

He said that the shows from Khayae radio will express freedom of speech in a systemised manner, thus becoming a model for all other radios to follow.

He hoped the radio will stay open long enough to become a sort of training centre for the next emerging community radio.