ID :
117959
Thu, 04/22/2010 - 08:50
Auther :
Shortlink :
https://oananews.org//node/117959
The shortlink copeid
OANA, UNEP SIGN MOU ON MEDIA, TRAINING COOPERATION
Seoul, April 21 (ANTARA) - The Organization of Asia-Pacific News Agencies (OANA) and the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) signed a memorandum of understanding for comprehensive media cooperation here Wednesday in the Asia Pacific region.
The MOU was signed by OANA President Dr. Ahmad Mukhlis Yusuf, who is also ANTARA News Agency Chief Executive Officer, and the UNEP Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific head Dr. Park Young Woo. The MoU`s signing was done on the sidelines of a three-day OANA Summit Congress held in conjunction with South Korean news agency Yonhap`s 30th anniversary.
Mukhlis Yusuf, who is also ANTARA chief executive officer , said cooperation with the UN environmental body was a mandate given by the OANA General Assembly in Jakarta in December 2007. It had strengthened the commitment on environmental issues and the agenda had ever since been an OANA priority.
Besides emphasizing the importance of OANA`s role in disseminating environmental issues through its news mechanism, news was not only the work of reporters, Mukhlis said. More than that, news could also carry a certain agenda as news was basically not value-free.
Therefore, , he urged UNEP to provide an agenda linked to environmental issues in cooperation with OANA in order to arouse people to understand the importance of avoiding global warming as a whole, not only on some segmented issues like depletion of the ozone layer. He also asked UNEP to cooperate in training programs and workshops on environmental issues for OANA journalists.
For his part, Dr. Park welcomed the initiatives of OANA`s president on those issues because they were efforts to tackle environmental problems of the global community as a whole. He went on to say that the challenge was how to change the mindset of the people and here the media could play a critical role.
The UNEP Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific head appreciated the commitment and assistance extended by OANA in that respect, saying that those efforts were of great benefit to people environment-wise.
The purpose of the MOU is to provide a framework of cooperation and understanding and to facilitate collaboration between the parties to further their shared goals and objectives in regard to conservation, protection, enhancement and support of nature and natural resources, including biological diversity worldwide.
These objectives will be achieved through regular dialogue meetings between UNEP and OANA and execution of a separate legal instrument between the parties to define and implement joint activities, with areas of cooperation to include OANA promotes and disseminates environment/UNEP news to its members, OANA members undertake to reduce their carbon emissions in their operations and join UNEP`s Climate Neutral Network as a group.
OANA will also allocate funds or provide support to their media for training in environmental reporting, and its members pool funds to support training of their reporters on the environment and the participation of their reporters in key environmental days and events being organized worldwide and within countries .
For its part, UNEP is to regularly provide information on the environment to OANA for dissemination to its members, help facilitate media training and experts for training of OANA member reporters and provide a calendar of key environment meetings and events to OANA members.
These areas form part of UNEP`s mandate and programme of work and have been approved by UNEP`s Governing Council. They are also priorities for OANA and some activities in these fields are already ongoing, but are in need of additional support.
OANA and UNEP are to hold regular bilateral meetings on matters of common interest, in accordance with an agenda agreed in advance by the parties, aiming also at the development/monitoring of a joint project. Such meetings may be held to discuss technical and operational issues related to furthering the objectives of the umbrella agreement as a whole.
OANA was established in 1961 on the initiative of UNESCO to secure direct and free exchange of news between the news agencies of a region inhabited by more than one half of the world`s population and to facilitate the free flow of information. Asia-Pacific countries account for 56 percent of the world`s gross product, some 50 percent of its trade turnover, over 60 percent of its maritime and nearly 25 percent of air transport volume.
OANA at present comprises 40 news agencies from 33 countries and the members are responsible for two-thirds of information circulated throughout the world.
The MOU was signed by OANA President Dr. Ahmad Mukhlis Yusuf, who is also ANTARA News Agency Chief Executive Officer, and the UNEP Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific head Dr. Park Young Woo. The MoU`s signing was done on the sidelines of a three-day OANA Summit Congress held in conjunction with South Korean news agency Yonhap`s 30th anniversary.
Mukhlis Yusuf, who is also ANTARA chief executive officer , said cooperation with the UN environmental body was a mandate given by the OANA General Assembly in Jakarta in December 2007. It had strengthened the commitment on environmental issues and the agenda had ever since been an OANA priority.
Besides emphasizing the importance of OANA`s role in disseminating environmental issues through its news mechanism, news was not only the work of reporters, Mukhlis said. More than that, news could also carry a certain agenda as news was basically not value-free.
Therefore, , he urged UNEP to provide an agenda linked to environmental issues in cooperation with OANA in order to arouse people to understand the importance of avoiding global warming as a whole, not only on some segmented issues like depletion of the ozone layer. He also asked UNEP to cooperate in training programs and workshops on environmental issues for OANA journalists.
For his part, Dr. Park welcomed the initiatives of OANA`s president on those issues because they were efforts to tackle environmental problems of the global community as a whole. He went on to say that the challenge was how to change the mindset of the people and here the media could play a critical role.
The UNEP Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific head appreciated the commitment and assistance extended by OANA in that respect, saying that those efforts were of great benefit to people environment-wise.
The purpose of the MOU is to provide a framework of cooperation and understanding and to facilitate collaboration between the parties to further their shared goals and objectives in regard to conservation, protection, enhancement and support of nature and natural resources, including biological diversity worldwide.
These objectives will be achieved through regular dialogue meetings between UNEP and OANA and execution of a separate legal instrument between the parties to define and implement joint activities, with areas of cooperation to include OANA promotes and disseminates environment/UNEP news to its members, OANA members undertake to reduce their carbon emissions in their operations and join UNEP`s Climate Neutral Network as a group.
OANA will also allocate funds or provide support to their media for training in environmental reporting, and its members pool funds to support training of their reporters on the environment and the participation of their reporters in key environmental days and events being organized worldwide and within countries .
For its part, UNEP is to regularly provide information on the environment to OANA for dissemination to its members, help facilitate media training and experts for training of OANA member reporters and provide a calendar of key environment meetings and events to OANA members.
These areas form part of UNEP`s mandate and programme of work and have been approved by UNEP`s Governing Council. They are also priorities for OANA and some activities in these fields are already ongoing, but are in need of additional support.
OANA and UNEP are to hold regular bilateral meetings on matters of common interest, in accordance with an agenda agreed in advance by the parties, aiming also at the development/monitoring of a joint project. Such meetings may be held to discuss technical and operational issues related to furthering the objectives of the umbrella agreement as a whole.
OANA was established in 1961 on the initiative of UNESCO to secure direct and free exchange of news between the news agencies of a region inhabited by more than one half of the world`s population and to facilitate the free flow of information. Asia-Pacific countries account for 56 percent of the world`s gross product, some 50 percent of its trade turnover, over 60 percent of its maritime and nearly 25 percent of air transport volume.
OANA at present comprises 40 news agencies from 33 countries and the members are responsible for two-thirds of information circulated throughout the world.
