UNITED NATIONS EDUCATIONAL
SCIENTIFIC AND CULTURAL ORGANIZATION
Speech by
Mr Abdul Waheed Khan
Assistant Director-General
for Communication and Information
on the occasion of the 24th session of the
Intergovernmental Council of the International Programme for the
Development of Communication
(IPDC)
UNESCO, Paris, 31 March 2003
Monsieur le Président,
Vénérés membres du conseil,
Mesdames et Messieurs,
C’est avec un grand plaisir que je vous reçois, au nom du Directeur-général de
l’UNESCO, à la vingt-quatrième session du conseil intergouvernemental du
Programme international pour le développement de la communication.
Nous sommes réunis à un moment de transformations importantes dans le
processus de sélection des projets du PIDC. Ces changements sont le résultat des
réformes mises en œuvre par le Conseil au cours des deux dernières années,
telles que reflétées dans les résolutions adoptées par la Conférence générale à sa
trente-deuxième session.
Actuellement, nous récoltons les bénéfices de ces changements. Un des résultats
les plus flagrants de ces réformes est le fait que désormais, le PIDC peut
accorder des fonds pour des projets, dès leur approbation par le Bureau et le
Conseil. Le PIDC n’est plus en déficit. Le délai entre l’approbation et la mise en
œuvre des projets à également été réduit.
Je voudrais souligner l’importance de ces changements. Les besoins en terme
de développement des media dans les pays en voie de développement sont
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souvent urgents et ne peuvent attendre. Aujourd’hui, nous sommes en mesure de
démarrer les soixante deux projets adoptés hier par le Bureau, lors de sa réunion.
Dorénavant, ce rythme sera maintenu par un PIDC réformé!
Change is also happening in other areas. In many instances, Regular Programme
activities are now being linked to the IPDC projects, in line with the current
IPDC priorities defined by the Council. Thus the synergy between the Regular
Programme and extra-budgetary activities is increasing and being strengthened.
In my last address to this Council, I emphasized the need for transparent,
accountable and efficient management of the programme. The Secretariat has
taken proactive measures to achieve these aims. All project proposals submitted
to the IPDC are now placed on the IPDC website for greater transparency. The
recent introduction of project implementation reports keep you up to date on the
current status of projects.
Funds received in the Special Account are allocated solely for project
implementation.
The Secretarial tasks of IPDC have been assigned to the
Communication Development Division. This not only reduces staff costs but
also produces new synergies with the Division throughout the various stages of
project development and implementation.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
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I am pleased to inform you that Germany and Japan have returned to the IPDC
as donors. I also particularly appreciate the recent financial contributions
received from Egypt and Greece. I wish to express my sincere gratitude to
Denmark, France, Finland, India, Luxemburg, Norway, Russian Federation and
South Korea for their invaluable contributions to IPDC. I would like to urge
other countries, particularly Australia, Italy, the Netherlands, Portugal, Sweden,
Switzerland, the United Kingdom and the United States of America to take a
closer look at IPDC as a unique multilateral mechanism to support the
development of free and pluralistic media in developing countries.
Ladies and gentlemen,
Reform is not an end in itself. It is simply the means to bring about greater
efficiency. Further changes need to be made, and in my view the improvement
of the quality of IPDC projects should now become a top priority. In this
context, the Advisers for Communication and Information and CI specialists
based in the field offices have a crucial role to play. The reforms you have
brought in have placed them at the heart of project preparation and
implementation. They are now in a better position to assist project proponents
from developing countries in presenting only high quality projects that can make
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a real impact on the development of a free and pluralistic media, strictly in line
with the four priorities defined by the Council.
Distinguished Delegates,
None of us would be here today if we didn’t believe in the crucial role that IPDC
plays in media development: one that is vital for building democratic, inclusive
societies. IPDC is the only multilateral forum in the UN system designed to
mobilize the international community to discuss and to promote media
development in developing countries. It is the only Programme that provides
support, not only for media projects, but also for the creation of enabling
environments that will make the growth of free and pluralistic media in
developing countries a true and viable possibility. And this is definitely the only
international forum that can assure a multi-stakeholder partnership to promote
free and pluralistic media development.
IPDC remains committed to the development of free and pluralistic media. This
commitment has to be reassured if are to support the growth of democratic
societies and to promote dialogue. IPDC’s role to support capacity building for
media, in terms of access to quality information, cannot be underestimated in the
context of emerging knowledge societies. Media professionals are knowledge
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brokers who gather, process, interpret and disseminate information in the public
domain on a daily basis. They mirror the aspirations of people, provide vital
information for people to act upon, facilitate a social forum to discuss important
issues. They play a vital role in promoting good governance and transparency of
administrations.
The educational task of media is becoming more and more paramount. Today,
children watch an average of 1400 hours of television per year compared to the
1100 hrs they stay at schools. Increasing media capacity with trained
professionals, supporting to diversify the content through media pluralism, both
of which are at the heart of IPDC mission, are becoming more and more
important.
Whilst IPDC project contributions are comparatively modest, its support for a
key project can act as a catalyst for major change. Today, Nepal has no fewer
than 22 local radio stations. Across Nepal today, rural women – 93 % of whom
are illiterate - are able to voice their concerns and bring women’s perspectives to
development issues. The catalyst for this was the small IPDC contribution to
introduce the first community radio in Nepal.
There are many such examples of the IPDC’s instrumental role in triggering an
ongoing process of media development. The IPDC has also contributed to
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innovation in the field of communication and information. A case in point is the
development of Community Multimedia Centers, or CMCs, which combine both
traditional and new media. The CMC concept emerged from a pilot project
implemented in Sri Lanka with modest support from the IPDC. Today, the CMC
model is recognised as a significant approach to harnessing communication and
information technology by rural and marginalized communities.
At the World Summit on the Information Society in Geneva last December, the
Government of Switzerland pledged financial support for a CMC scale-up
initiative in three African countries:
Mali, Mozambique and Senegal. The
Director-General of UNESCO and the Presidents of the three countries
participated in the launch ceremony in Geneva, marking the importance attached
by all partners to this ambitious endeavour. IPDC can be proud of its role as an
incubator of this, as of many other successful projects.
At the Summit in Geneva, UNESCO played a major role in stressing the
importance of the media in constructing knowledge societies. Among the many
events organised by UNESCO, the session on public service broadcasting at the
World Electronic Media Forum underlined the major role played by independent
broadcasting services: providing balanced information, safeguarding media
pluralism and contributing to cultural diversity.
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Among the 150 actions adopted by the WSIS, seventy five are directly related to
the areas of UNESCO competence. They are already included in UNESCO’s
regular programme activities. Since the Summit, I have kept you informed of
our major follow-up actions. I have written to you about the CMC scale-up and
about UNESCO’s action in promoting diversity of content. You will continue to
receive regular information letters from me about how UNESCO is putting the
WSIS Action Plan into effect.
Distinguished delegates,
The Director-General of UNESCO, Koïchiro Matsuura, is convinced that
UNESCO has a vital role to play in ensuring that all the peoples of the world
become active users, and not passive consumers, of new technologies. The IPDC
has long upheld the same philosophy.
Open and truly inclusive knowledge societies have to be based, first and
foremost, on universal access to the benefits of new information and
communication technologies. This issue of access is implicit in the Universal
Declaration of Human Rights, particularly Article 19 bearing on freedom of
expression and Article 27 relating to freedom of access to information.
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UNESCO will be able to reinforce its role in emerging knowledge societies only
with the full participation of its Member States and the international community
to support development of information and media channels in developing
countries. I continue to stress the vital role of media in producing, gathering and
distributing quality content within the information society. Individual
communication has its limits. Communication to the general public and
providing a public sphere through media will continue to be essential for, inter
alia, selecting and interpreting information and placing it in its proper context,
and to serve as a platform for the exchange of information and ideas.
The IPDC’s mission is irreplaceable and is ever more relevant as we move
towards the knowledge societies of the future.
I know I can count on all of you to help ensure that IPDC continues to play its
role fully in contributing to that future.
Thank you.
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