Australia's National Indigenous Television (NITV) and the Special Broadcasting Service (SBS) are set to broadcast live and comprehensive coverage of the annual Garma Festival.

The event, taking place from 2 to 5 August 2024, is located in Gulkula, Gumatj Country, in remote northeast Arnhem Land. NITV and SBS will simulcast key forums and events, and a dedicated SBS On Demand Garma Festival hub will host all forums, panels, and the daily buŋgul.

The Garma Festival, Australia's largest political Indigenous gathering, is set to take place ahead of an impending Federal Election, upcoming state and territory elections, and is the first major political forum focused on Indigenous affairs since the Referendum on an Indigenous Voice to Parliament. The festival's coverage on NITV and across the SBS network will give Australians a front-row seat to the critical conversations centred in the lived experience of First Nations peoples.

"We can’t wait to be back on the ground at Gulkula, red dirt between our toes, on the beautiful and sacred land of the Yolŋu people,” said Tanya Denning-Orman, a proud Birri and Guugu Yimidhirr woman and Director of Indigenous Content at SBS. “Following the Referendum on an Indigenous Voice to Parliament, and as Australia looks ahead to Federal, state and territory elections, NITV and SBS will provide unparalleled access to the critical conversations at Garma that influence political discourse, policy agendas, and commitments towards Indigenous affairs in Australia."

NITV News: Nula will broadcast live on Friday 2 August on NITV and SBS as the festival gets underway, and NITV News: Garma will present highlights from the event as it comes to a close on Monday 5 August at 6pm on NITV and SBS. NITV is partnering with the Yothu Yindi Foundation as the Official Media Supporter of the Garma Festival, continuing its long-running coverage of the event in the second year of a three-year partnership.

"NITV is proud to partner with the Yothu Yindi Foundation to continue bringing Garma to mob across the continent, as we’ve been doing for more than a decade. Through our coverage across the SBS network, we’re connecting the oldest living continuous culture with the newest Australians, and are excited to continue exploring more ways to engage more Australians,” Denning-Orman added.

"NITV has played an important role in sharing Garma with its audiences over many years, and has been a long-standing Official Supporter of the event. We look forward to continuing to work together to reach more Australians, as NITV and the wider SBS network expands and deepens its coverage, and gives communities wherever they are in Australia, an opportunity to explore the unique experience of Garma,” said Denise Bowden, CEO of the Yothu Yindi Foundation.

SBS will provide multilingual coverage across more than 60 languages with SBS Audio, including with SBS Arabic and SBS Chinese journalists reporting on the ground. Daily live coverage, updates and highlights across NITV’s platforms will be presented by NITV’s Indigenous News and Current Affairs team. SBS will also simulcast key events from the festival, and SBS News will report from Garma, providing updates on SBS World News and its platforms, with Chief Political Correspondent, Anna Henderson, on the ground.