The conference, which took place from 9 to 10 November in Amsterdam (Netherlands) was co-organized by the Asia-Pacific Institute for Broadcasting Development (AIBD) and Radio Netherlands Worldwide (RNW), and was attended by 110 delegates from 33 countries.

“Broadcasters need to share, exchange and also co-produce contents,” pointed out Mogens Schmidt, UNESCO’s Deputy Assistant Director-General for Communication and Information, who attended the event. He spoke about possible twinning projects between broadcasters from different countries and realities. “All broadcast media development assistance should always be accompanied by serious capacity-building programmes,” underlined Schmidt.

The objective of this third annual event (the first took place in Paris in 2006 and the second - in Bonn in 2007), was to create fruitful linkages between broadcasters from two different continents. The meeting was dedicated to the theme “A New Agenda for Media”, which was covered in five sessions.

During the first panel, “Media and Responsible Practices”, the participants discussed how to balance press freedom, and press responsibility and accountability. “Climate Change and Disaster Issues: the Role of Media” was the title of the second session, which addressed the possibilities of mass media to help the fight against the climate change.

The third panel discussed content sharing and co-productions, and was followed by a session dedicated to the increased public participation in media. “Cultural Diversity” and “Social Dialogue” were the topics of the fifth panel.