Malaysia to host World Summit on Media for Children

Malaysia's national broadcaster, RTM, is to host the World Summit on Media for Children in 2014.

The event will be organised by the ABU and will be hosted by RTM in Kuala Lumpur on 8-10 September.

Malaysia's Minister of Information, Communication and Culture, Datuk Seri Rais Yatim, gave his approval yesterday for RTM to host the summit during a meeting with RTM's Director-General Dato' Norhyati Ismail, and the ABU Secretary-General Javad Mottaghi.

The summit will also commemorate the 50th anniversary of the ABU, which was formed in 1964.

Patricia Edgar, Chairperson of the World Summit Foundation Board, had earlier requested the ABU to organise the summit in Asia.

"This will be the first time a World Summit on Media for Children has been held in Asia since the Summit Movement began in 1995," Dr Edgar said.

"The Summit Foundation Board is delighted to be working with RTM-Malaysia and the ABU to host a seminal event in such an important region of the world, where children are such a large proportion of the population and at a time when technology is opening up so many exciting possibilities for their education and enlightenment. 

"The Summit in 2014 will be an ideal way to mark the occasion of the 50th anniversary of ABU and celebrate the achievements for children and young people by broadcasters across the region and around the world." 

   

Since the first World Summit on Television and Children was held in Melbourne, Australia, in 1995, such meetings have been held every three years and have been hosted by cities such as London, Thessaloniki, Rio de Janeiro, Johannesburg and Karlstad.

The objectives of the Summits are:

• to achieve a greater understanding of developments in children's media around the world;

• to raise the status of children's programming;

• to draw to the attention of key players in media production and distribution the importance of issues relating to children and young people;

• to agree on a charter of guiding principles in children's media;

• to ensure the provision of programmes for children will be guaranteed as the communications revolution proceeds, by assisting in the provision of opportunities for quality children's programming in the future.

See the Summit website: www.wsmcf.com

(Source: Asia-Pacific Broadcasting Union)