The Federation of Arab News Agencies (FANA) has concluded its two-day 45th Assembly in the Jordanian capital Amman.
The assembly, sponsored by Jordanian Prime Minister Hani Al Mulki, was presided over by FANA's President and KUNA's Chairman and Director General Shaikh Mubarak Al-Duaij Al Ibrahim Al Sabah.
Top officials from 15 Arab news agencies took part in the assembly's three sessions, together with European and international counterparts.
Several resolutions have been made, topped with the re-election Shaikh Mubarak for another two-year term, and the decision to accept Kuwait's invitation to host the next assembly, Kuwait News Agency (KUNA) reported.
The assembly announced that KUNA won FANA's 2017 best photo of the year award for Ghazi Qafaf's "Kuwaiti children and dhows". The Saudi Press Agency (SPA) won the award of the best report of the year.
The assembly's final statement said that chiefs of Lebanon's National News Agency (NNA) and Oman News Agency (ONA) were elected deputies of FANA's president.
A new secretariat was also elected for the next two years, consisting of the director generals of SPA, the Jordanian News Agency (Petra) the Tunisian News Agency (TAP) and the Emirates News Agency (WAM).
In addition, a committee was formed to re-draft the federation's statute and bylaw.
According to the statement, the assembly stressed the significance of organising biennial round-tables with international news agencies to explain developments on the media scene and to correct any fake news or trends against the Arab world. The decision aims to counter terrorists' use of certain news outlets to publish their news as scoops.
On relations with UNESCO, FANA emphasised the necessity of leaving the door open with the organization, proposing an annual meeting to be held with UNESCO officials besides joint intellectual events.
The assembly reiterated the significance of carrying on with coordination with the European news agencies, forming a framework for annual meetings between the two sides.
The FANA members welcomed a proposal from WAM to organize a conference under the theme "Toward a tolerant media discourse." The event will focus on the role media can play to counter terrorism and discourse of hate and to promote toleration and working hard on joining efforts to fight "media illiteracy."
The meeting approved FANA's participation in the coming News Agencies World Congress, Bulgaria, 2019.
FANA's Secretary General was tasked with contacting his counterpart of the European Alliance of News Agencies (EANA) on terminating the agreements signed between the two sides, since the European side has not yet activated it, and to work on a new one.
Established in 1975, FANA includes 18 Arab news agencies as members. It is affiliated to the Arab League.

Source: BNA