DUBAI, 10 April 2006 — Sheikh Muhammad ibn Rashid Al-Maktoum, vice president of the United Arab Emirates and prime minister and ruler of Dubai, received the new president and members of the board of directors of the Arab Journalism Award at his palace in Zabeel on Saturday.
Sheikh Muhammad commended the board for its efforts to promote the noble ideals underlying the prize, which aims at promoting journalism in the region.
“The award is a means to bolster Arab media, delivering the message of comprehensive change and progress in the Arab societies,” the UAE vice president said during the reception.
Sheikh Muhammad was also briefed on the objectives and future plans of the new board. He was also given an outline of the selection criteria for the journalism award winners.
In a meeting held on Saturday the board members discussed the final preparations for the April 26 award ceremony. The board endorsed the recommendations of the selection committee for the winners in various categories. The names of the winners will be announced at the function.
Khalfan Al-Rumi, chairman of the board, lauded the encouragement given by Sheikh Muhammad for the award and his full-hearted support.
Mona Al-Marri, secretary-general of the board, observed that the encouragement of the vice president has been a decisive factor in achieving the goals of the award.
“With the new board comprising luminaries in the media , it will have an unmistakable impact on the Arab media and contribute to maintaining the continuation of the award.”
The members of the board are Muhammad Jassem Al-Saqar, vice chairman of the board, Dr. Azzam Al-Dakhil, executive vice president of Saudi Research and Marketing Group, Ghassan Sharbil, editor in chief of Al-Hayat, Osama Saraya, editor in chief of Al-Ahram, Saif Al-Sharif, director general of Dastur, and Joseph Samaha, editor in chief of Al-Safir, Muhammad Barakat, editor in chief of Al-Akhbar, Abdul Ilah Balqaziz, a Moroccan media person, Muhammad Yousuf, chairman of Journalists Association, Amran Matar Turaim, executive managing editor of Al-Khaleej, Dhaen Shaheen, executive chief editor of Al-Bayan newspaper, Nasser Al-Dhaheri, director general of Al-Arabiya for Press and Media, Ghassan Tahboub, a media expert, Abdullah Rasheed of Emirates Media, and Aysha Sultan of Dubai Media Organization.
