Paris, March 30 (No.2000-50) - The Intergovernmental Council of UNESCO’s International Programme for the Development of Communication (IPDC) ended its 21st session at UNESCO Headquarters today with a decision to help fund a total of 57 new media projects, which will be implemented once sufficient funds are provided to the IPDC’s Special Account.

Meanwhile, the following countries announced they will contribute extra funding to the IPDC: Denmark US$500,000; Germany US$100,000; Luxembourg US$ 150,000; Netherlands US$150,000; and Norway, US$250,000.

Projects approved by the 21st session include four pilot projects concerning: broadcast archiving in Gambia; a printing press for the journalism department of the Malawi Polytechnic; an Eastern Caribbean Internet newspaper; and an inter-regional training project, JOURNET, involving universities and professional training centres around the world.

In Africa, a total of 24 projects were approved, ranging from the development of a free media institution in Kenya to community radio in the service of local development in Mali through the provision of Internet training to women in South Africa. Fifteen projects were approved for the Asia Pacific region, ranging from the establishment of community media production centres in Bhutan to linking local radio stations in an online network to improve news coverage and programming in Laos.

Eight Latin American and Caribbean projects were approved covering equipment for a municipal radio station in Ecuador and continuing education for journalists in Panama. In the Arab states, notable projects, among the five approved, include an Arab women’s media training centre in Jordan and a mobile rural radio production and broadcasting unit in Mauritania, as well as the development of a media resource centre in Iraq. Four European projects were also approved for Albania, Bulgaria and Romania.

The Council’s selection process reflected the following criteria: Improvement of media pluralism and promotion of press freedom; Training activities; Creation and strengthening of community media; New information and communication technologies. The Council also decided that priority should be given to the development of Community Multimedia Centres.

Since 1981, more than 50 countries have channelled US$ 85 million to over 900 IPDC projects in the majority of developing countries. The IPDC was created in 1980 to identify the needs of developing countries in the field of communication, to assist in developing technical and human resources in these countries, and to promote the transfer of technology. It provides financial assistance to a wide variety of projects with a view to reducing the gap between industrialised and developing countries in the field of communication and information.

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For more information: http://www.unesco.org/webworld/ipdc/