Acting Minister of Media and Chairman of the Board of Directors of Saudi Press Agency (SPA) Dr. Majid bin Abdullah Al-Qasabi opened this evening the two-day 48th Conference of the General Assembly of the Federation of Arab News Agencies (FANA) with the participation of heads of member agencies in FANA hosted by "SPA" at the Cultural Palace in Riyadh, in the presence of a number of ministers and members of the corps Diplomats accredited to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, and heads of FANA member agencies. The ceremony began with the recitation of verses from the Holy Qur'an, then the audience watched a video presentation on the march of FANA throughout 47 years. Then, the SPA President and the FAN Chairman Dr. Fahd bin Hassan Al Aqran delivered a speech in which he welcomed the attendees and FANA members in Riyadh, the capital of Arabism, which did not hesitate to support any project that achieves Arab integration in all fields. He said that the media scene in its reality is going through fundamental changes that affect all pillars of the media process, "the message, the sender, the receiver and the medium" as the future or the audience, which is the most important of the four pillars of the media, differed greatly in its requirements, method, choices and means, pointing to the importance of the role of media professionals, governmental and private media institutions for change of its means and media in line with the rapid changes in the media industry, as well as enhancing its efforts, impact and continuity given the credibility and professional reliability of these institutions and agencies. Also, the SPA President Dr. Fahd Al Aqran stressed the importance of news agencies as a reliable source in the transfer and flow of information, and the impact they have on the local and international levels. Concluding his speech, Dr. Al Aqran extended on behalf of FANA, deep thanks and appreciation to the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud and HRH the Crown Prince for their support of Arab and Islamic news agencies, extending thanks to the Acting Minister of Media, Dr. Majid Al-Qasabi for his support of the projects aimed at developing the media, as well as his thanks to the heads and members of FANA and its Secretary General for their efforts over the past years. After that, the Director-General and Editor-in-Chief of the Oman News Agency, Ibrahim Al-Azri, gave a speech in which he expressed his thanks to the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud and HRH the Crown Prince for the role played by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in supporting joint Arab action, commending the Saudi Press Agency for hosting the conference, supporting the efforts of FANA throughout the stages of development being witnessed over the past years. Then, FANA Secretary General Dr. Farid Ayar delivered a speech in which he stressed that FANA has worked over the past years to achieve a number of goals to support Arab news agencies and build bridges of communication with their counterparts in the world, pointing to the importance of developing work and shouldering responsibility towards developments in the field of media and transformations. After that, a documentary film was shown about the march of SPA throughout half a century. Then, the Acting Minister of Media and Chairman of the Board of Directors of SPA, Dr. Majid Al-Qasabi delivered a speech in which he welcomed the attendees, heads and members of the participating news agencies at FANA conference in their second country, the Kingdom, appreciating them for their contribution to supporting joint media action, looking forward to continued fruitful communication in order to achieve the aspirations of the leaders and peoples of the Arab countries. He also highlighted the role of the media in conveying the facts and information we live in, yet whatever contradicts the ethics of professionalism and deliberately disseminates misleading and erroneous information requires scrutiny and response to reveal the truth and correct facts, and information. Dr. Al-Qasabi further said: "Today, everyone in our societies has become a source and a receiver for news through social media applications, which requires keeping pace with this stage, and qualifying national cadres capable of investing these platforms and means to serve the Arab media discourse." He stressed that the role of Arab news agencies is pivotal, detailed and important, and they have a responsibility to improve the media to deliver meaningful messages, stressing the support of the Ministry of Information to achieve these goals, and through "SPA", doors will open to benefit from experience and exchange experiences, and we will contribute to the qualification of cadres to the industry of distinguished Arab media. Dr. Al-Qasabi also expressed his thanks to the heads of news agencies, members of FANA for their efforts that enhance the strength of relations rooted in religion, Arabism, neighborhood and common positions. In recognition of the efforts of those who served FANA, the SPA honored a number of FANA former presidents as Dr. Fahd Al Aqran, on behalf of the Minister of Media, handed over memorial shields to Sheikh Mubarak bin Diaej Al-Ibrahim Al-Sabah; Dr. Faisal Al-Shboul, received on his behalf by the Director-General of Jordan News Agency; Abdullah bin Fahd Al-Hussein; Dr. Mohammad bin Mubarak Al-Araimi and the FANA Secretary-General. During the ceremony, the results of the FANA competition for the best report and the best photo, which was approved by the Federation annually, were announced as the photographer of the Saudi Press Agency in the Tabuk region, Mohammad Al-Sharif won FANA Award for the best photo for 2021 for his photo: (painting with light). After that, the Saudi Press Agency honored former Vice President Ahmed bin Ibrahim Al-Awad in recognition of his efforts in serving SPA.
