I am filled with a sense of the immense responsibility that rests on our shoulders, my fellow women and men journalists, towards society: conveying information, educating, raising awareness, building future generations, and making a serious and effective contribution to the country’s social, economic and political development.
Celebrating World Press Day today, after celebrating blessed Eid al-Fitr yesterday and International Workers’ Day the day before, is a most joyous occasion to offer you my sincere congratulations and warmest wishes. I pray that Almighty Allah help us fulfil our professional duties and noble media mission honestly and sincerely.
On this occasion so dear to us, I call on my fellow women and men media professionals to meet the scale of the challenges with appropriate sacrifices, so that we can succeed in developing our country and bring it alongside advanced nations.
Despite the difficulties we face, our legitimate aspirations to address shortcomings, establish strong institutions, and fulfil media workers’ ambitions for training and professionalism will remain a beacon lighting our path. They are reinforced by the reforms that have for some time shaped the highest authorities’ general direction: appointing a Press Reform Committee and considering its recommendations; issuing draft laws and decrees, some concerning the restructuring of the High Authority for the Press and Audiovisual Media, the Press Support Fund and the Press House; the draft Professional Journalist Act; the press card decree; implementation of public media organisations’ statutes; and other measures. Together with our sincere resolve, these will undoubtedly help set the sector’s reform in motion, serving greater freedom, established professionalism, and distinctive, high-quality media accessible to different social and political stakeholders ...
Congratulations to every woman and man in the media who believes in the mission of this demanding profession, has endured the burden of carrying it, and has worked for it and to activate its role....
Ahmed Taleb Ould Maâloum
President of the Journalists’ Union