KUNA chairman to Moscow for OANA general assembly

Board Chairman and Director General of Kuwait News Agency (KUNA) Sheikh Mubarak Al-Duaij Al-Ibrahim Al-Sabah is heading to Moscow, Wednesday, with a delegation of officials to attend the 15th General Assembly of the Organization of Asia-Pacific News Agencies (OANA), hosted by ITAR-TASS, September 18-22. The KUNA chairman noted it is of great importance to take part in OANA meetings to keep in touch with the latest in operation and mechanisms in news agencies in Asia and Australia. The meetings provide opportunity to exchange views and expertise in all areas and on all topics of common interest. Topping issue to be discussed by the OANA assembly is confidence building and cooperation among OANA members and serious effort to keep up with the advancements in the fields of communication and internet applications to improve performance and output, he remarked. The attendees would also discuss the rise of social networks and online media as important and inescapable source for news content. Among issues to be stressed during the meetings is the need to get information and news pertaining to member states from OANA news sources, to guarantee reliability, credibility, and objectivity, Sheikh Mubarak Al-Duaij remarked. The sessions would also be an occasion to meet officials from GCC, Arab, and other news agencies and discuss means of bolstering cooperation with KUNA. KUNA joined the organization in the year 2000, and is contributing to the photo exhibit held on the sidelines of the General Assembly. The Kuwaiti contribution includes photos showing the progress in scientific, social, and economic life in the country till the present day. Russian news agency ITAR-TASS is set to take over OANA three-year presidency from Turkey's Anadolu News Agency. The Organisation of Asia-Pacific News Agencies (OANA) was formed 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. At present, OANA brings together 40 news agencies from 33 countries, and OANA members are responsible for two-thirds of information circulated throughout the world.