Torben Krogh, Chairman of UNESCO’s Intergovernmental Council of the International Programme for the Development of Communication (IPDC) and Chairman of the Danish National Commission for UNESCO, has suddenly passed away, only 63 years old.

Mr Krogh was a journalist and editor for more than 40 years and in his long and brilliant professional career, he was the editor-in-chief of several Danish newspapers, in particular the quality daily Information, for which he was still active writing leads. His last contribution is published in today’s edition. Torben Krogh was also one of the most respected commentators of Danish and international politics on the Danish Radio.

For many years, Torben Krogh was Chairman of the Board of The Danish School of Journalism, The Danish Further Training Centre for Journalists, and The Centre for Journalistic Research and Further Training.

Internationally, Torben Krogh was active in UNESCO for almost the last twenty years. From 1995 to 1997, he was President of UNESCO’s General Conference, and between 1992 and 1998 and since 2002 he was Chairman of the Intergovernmental Council of the International Programme for the Development of Communication (IPDC).

Torben Krogh was an outstanding figure in international media development and freedom of expression circles. His dedication to media assistance to developing countries was highly respected and widely recognized. He had a thorough understanding of media development challenges and had travelled widely to advise in his capacity as a trainer, as a coach and as the Chairman of the IPDC Council.