JEDDAH, 30 November 2005 — Experts yesterday called for further streamlining the licensing procedure of public relations companies. They also sought increased participation of women in the growing PR field with a view to utilizing their skills and expertise within the industry.
The experts, who formed a specially constituted team of the forum, the Kingdom’s first that ended after a two-day run at the Jeddah Hilton, came up with a number of recommendations that could benefit the industry, according to Mohamed Al-Ayed, managing director of Arab Conferences Company (ARC).
The panel suggested that the universities and specialized professional institutions that have communications and PR departments should concentrate more on developing both short and long term programs for the benefit of students.
Among the other major recommendations of the event, opened by Prince Sultan ibn Salman, secretary-general of the Supreme Commission for Tourism on Monday, are to make the forum an annual event and invite specialists and experts from abroad to present their success stories at the next year’s forum, and institute an annual award for the best Saudi PR practitioner. It is proposed that the forum should be held in the Kingdom’s major regions on a rotational basis and with a new theme that is relevant to PR activities.
At the local level, the organizers hope to expand the base of participants to include all those involved in PR directly or indirectly at both official and private levels.
Aside from publishing a periodic newsletter covering local and overseas PR developments, the organizers plan to set up a “Tawasul” (communications) Internet group to establish a direct link among all those who work or are interested in the field.
The team has also called for a drive for boosting the membership of Saudi Media & Communications Organization and Gulf chapter of International Public Relations Association (GC-IPRA) among PR practitioners. It urged that the two organizations should provide programs and services that would assist firms seeking certification and accreditation.
Speakers on the opening day and participants in the various workshops held yesterday urged public and private sector organizations to increasingly invest in PR activities that would largely benefit the society.
More than 300 participants took part in the event, with activation and interaction as its theme, which was organized by ARC in partnership with Supreme Commission for Tourism, GC-IPRA, Jeddah Chamber of Commerce & Industry, and Saudi Creative Communications Services.
The event’s media sponsors included Arab News and its sister publication Al-Eqtisadiah. Saudi Aramco, Al Hanoo Holding Company, Al Baik Food Systems, Savola Group, Saudi Arabian Airlines, Aramex, and Hilton Hotel were among its sponsors.
