DUBAI, 7 March 2006 — Awards for lifetime achievement in regional publishing were presented at the Middle East Publishing Conference that ended here yesterday. Saudi Research and Marketing Group was one of the main partners of the event. MEPC Lifetime Achievement Award for Newspaper Publisher was given posthumously to the late Abdulaziz Al-Saqqaf (1952-99), the founder, editor and publisher of the Yemen Times who was also a human rights activist.
MEPC Lifetime Achievement Award for magazine publisher went to Ghanima Fahd Al-Marzouq, publisher of Usrati weekly, Kuwait, and one of the pioneer publishers in Kuwait and the Gulf region.
MEPC Lifetime Award for online publisher was presented to Aljazeera.net, the first mainstream Arabic news site that has become one of the 50 most visited sites worldwide.
A selection committee comprising representatives of the three co-organizers of the Middle East Publishing Conference — the International Federation of Periodical Publishers (FIPP), the World Association of Newspapers (WAN) and Dubai Consultancy Research & Media Center (DCRMC) chose the finalists.
Donald Kummerfeld, chief executive of FIPP, said the awards recognized the diversity of regional media and the outstanding contributions made by individuals and groups.
“We’ve been involved in adjudicating similar awards in different parts of the world and it was quite clear to us that the standard of nominees was very high indeed — as good as any we have encountered anywhere,” he added. “With so many worthy candidates, the decision was far from simple, but we believe the recognition bestowed by the awards is a true reflection of genuine lifetime achievement as indicated by the titles,” Timothy Balding, chief executive of WAN, said.
Magazine category winner Ghanima Fahd Al-Marzouq, publisher of Usrati weekly, Kuwait, is one of the pioneer publishers in Kuwait and the Gulf region. She gave Kuwaiti women a voice at a time when women had very few freedoms. She has made significant contributions to the advancement of women, socially and culturally. She was also a successful publisher in the business sense. Usrati magazine has become one of the top family magazines in the Gulf region.
Online winner Aljazeera.net (Arabic) was launched in January 2001 as the first mainstream Arabic news site and in a short time gained widespread popularity. A year later the Al-Jazeera site attracted more than 811 million impressions and 161 million visits. Since being established, the site has undergone constant expansion and enhancements.