Cairo: The Arab Media Excellence Award jury meeting, organized by the Arab League's Media and Communications Sector and chaired by Kuwait, commenced in Cairo. In a speech, Assistant Secretary-General and Head of the Media and Communications Sector, Ambassador Ahmad Rashid Khattabi, highlighted the purpose of the meeting, which is to examine nominations from member states and organizations involved in media functions. The jury aims to select the most distinguished nominations based on stipulated criteria, transparency, and integrity.
According to Kuwait News Agency, the session is held under the theme "Arab Youth and New Media," emphasizing the extensive use of social media and its various applications in productive, professional, service, and media sectors, particularly among the youth. Khattabi also remarked that this year's award occurs amid the ongoing Israeli aggression on the Gaza Strip, which has resulted in a severe humanitarian crisis, claiming thousands of lives and causing significant destruction.
Khattabi further revealed that the General Secretariat of the Arab League received approximately 145 works, including television, radio, newspaper, and digital entries. The nominations comprise 30 television works, 37 radio works, 43 newspaper works, and 31 digital works.
Talal Al-Haifi, the meeting's chair and head of Al-Arabiya TV in Kuwait, expressed gratitude towards all contributors to the award's success. The Arab Media Excellence Award, launched in 2015 under Council of Arab Information Ministers' Resolution No. 409, aims to recognize distinguished media models in the Arab world and their efforts in addressing issues pertinent to the Arab nation.