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Beirut, 17 February 2003 (United Nations Information Service)--Under
the auspices of Lebanese Minister of Environment Michel Moussa,
prominent Arab journalists and media experts will be meeting at
the United Nations House, Riad El-Solh Square, Beirut to discuss
"Strengthening the Role of Arab Media for Achieving Sustainable
Development" in a workshop undertaken by the United Nations
Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA) from 25 to
27 February 2003.
The Meeting, which will open at 10:00 a. m. on Tuesday 25
February, is intended to enhance the capacity of Arab journalists
and strengthen their role in evaluating the outcomes of the World
Summit for Social Development (WSSD) and monitoring their
implementation through providing them with the knowledge base and
necessary tools. The ultimate objective of the Meeting is to raise
the awareness of the Arab public on sustainable development
issues; encourage their participation in the decision-making
process through qualified journalism; and develop a regional
action plan for enhancing the role of the media as an advocate for
sustainable development.
Following the workshop, the Arab journalists would be capable of
handling all issues that fall under environment and sustainable
development, and would have the necessary tools and techniques for
enhancing public awareness and public participation in the
decision-making processes. They would also design and implement
communication strategies for both the national and regional
sustainable development initiatives.
Participants in the Meeting will be media experts from Bahrain,
Egypt, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, Palestine, Qatar,
the Syrian Arab Republic, Tunisia, the United Arab Emirates and
Yemen, in addition to participants from the United Nations
Environment Programme Regional Office for Western Asia
(UNEP/ROWA), the United Nations HABITAT, the League of Arab States
(LAS) and the Arab Media Forum for Environment and Development (AMFED).
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