CHITCHAT. Former Philippine Ambassador to the United Arab Emirates Hjayceelyn Quintana (2nd from left) and News and Information Bureau Assistant Director Lee Ann Pattugalan chat with officials from Arabsat at the inaugural Global Media Congress in Abu Dhabi on Nov. 15, 2022. PNA's participation in the inaugural GMC bolstered the agency's intent to reach out to overseas Filipinos working and living not just in the UAE but in the Gulf region. (PNA photo)
MANILA – Several ambassadors to the United Arab Emirates have expressed their support to the upcoming second edition of the Global Media Congress, set to start next week in capital Abu Dhabi.
Ambassadors from the Philippines, Costa Rica, Chile, Indonesia, and even Brazil's Chargé d'Affaires highlighted the role of the Congress in promoting cooperation, fostering relationships between governments and media practitioners, addressing pressing global issues and shaping the future of the media industry.
Philippine Ambassador to the UAE Alfonso Ferdinand Ver, in a video message curated by the Emirates News Agency (WAM) for GMC 2023, affirmed the Philippine Embassy and government’s support to the Congress.
“The Philippines is in full support of this undertaking, we believe in the value of nations working together, to explore new approaches to address global concerns through the media,” the envoy said.
PNA participation at GMC 2022
“The Philippines views the UAE as a valuable partner in a host of areas; therefore, a delegation from the Philippine News Agency took part in the inaugural Global Media Congress last year,” Ver said.
A five-person delegation from the PNA, led by News and Information Bureau Assistant Director Lee Ann Pattugalan, participated in the first edition of the GMC last year, which allowed the state-run news agency to establish and strengthen existing links with its global counterparts in government and private media.
READ: Inaugural Global Media Congress kicks off in Abu Dhabi
Ver noted that there are many Filipino media professionals working in the UAE.
“Given the strong friendly relations between the Philippines and the UAE, I think there is so much we can accomplish together. There is so much more potential in many areas, especially in the media sector,” he added.
According to the Philippine Statistics Authority 2022 Survey on Overseas Filipinos, released on Oct. 11, UAE is one of the top destinations for overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) – second to Saudi Arabia, and is home to over 260,000 Filipino migrant workers.
Francisco Chacon Hernandez, Ambassador of Costa Rica to the UAE, said the GMC is the right platform for relevant stakeholders and leaders to tackle disinformation through the use of the internet.
“As social media and the internet form the public opinion these days, it is fundamental for policymakers and media outlets to come together and share best practices on how to make use of the power of the internet. I think the Global Media Congress is the right platform for this,” Hernandez said.
For Chilean Ambassador to the UAE Patricio Diaz Broughton, cooperation between media practitioners and entities “can break prejudices, false impressions, and correct misleading information about the cultures, political and social developments” among countries.
Platform for collaboration
Husin Bagis, Indonesian Ambassador to the UAE, recalled how the UAE, through the inaugural Global Media Congress, set the stage for the media sector by bringing together key stakeholders from around the world to discuss pressing issues, share best practices and forge new partnerships.
“The first edition of the Global Media Congress in 2022 was proof that the UAE is a visionary leader in the region that prepares for future media,” Bagis said.
“In an era of rapid technological developments, we need to continue to collaborate so as not to be left behind by developments in the media sector. I think the first GMC succeeded in becoming just that: a platform for collaboration,” he added.
Meanwhile, Eliana Zugaib, Chargé d'Affaires of the Brazilian Embassy in Abu Dhabi, is confident that the second edition of the Congress “will provide an excellent opportunity to strengthen existing partnerships and foster new ones among media professionals from all over the world." (PNA)
