Dubai: A committee in charge of media emiratisation will not impose quotas for Emiratis but will be open to suggestions from media outlets, Gulf News has learnt.
The committee, chaired by Ahmad Ali Al Beloushi, CEO of the Emirates Media Inc, will hold its first meeting on Monday to review emiratisation policies of the media, said Ebrahim Al Abed, director general of the National Media Council.
The committee, set up by the NMC, was the brainchild of editors of local newspapers who endorsed a memorandum on emiratisation of the media sector in the UAE during their periodic meeting held at the Gulf News headquarters in late January.
The NMC held a meeting yesterday under its chairman Saqr Gobash Saeed Gobash, Minister of Labour, and decided to task the committee with addressing the council's plan and initiatives for emiratisation in the media sector of the country.
Gobash confirmed the importance of forming a committee to follow up the NMC's plan and initiatives for emiratisation in the media sector to help Emiratis participate in sustainable development of their country.
He added the formation of this committee comes under the government's strategy to upgrade the performance of media in various UAE's institutions under the stewardship of President His Highness Shaikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan and directives of His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of UAE and Ruler of Dubai.
The editors' memorandum, approved by the Cabinet, highlighted the real partnership and exemplary communication between the public and private media outlets concerned on the one hand and the government, represented by the (NMC), on the other.
Suggestions
The chief editors suggested setting up a national committee to emiratise the media sector, who can submit its visions to the NMC. They also suggested taking rapid steps in training and qualification, especially by the Journalists Association supported by the NMC, which has allocated Dh1 million for this purpose.
The editors said Government support will be indispensable, whether through implementing sovereign decisions or participating in financing them, such as part-paying salaries of Emirati journalists.
The NMC also discussed the licensing conditions and standards for setting up of TV and radio stations or channels in accordance with UAE's regulations and relevant international standards.
Top managers and executives from Emirates Centre for Strategic Studies and Research (ECSSR), Media Department at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Dubai Media City, Emirates Media Inc. (EMI), UAE University and National Media Council (NMC) attended the meeting.
The participants were also briefed on all issues relevant to the media sector and particularly the TV Audience Measurement project which will be launched in early May after it is approved by the Ministerial Council for Services.
The project is aimed at producing accurate, reliable, and actionable data of television viewership behaviour patterns for better advertisement planning.
Returns
The system allows advertisers to gauge their returns on marketing and branding investment. It entails a round-the-clock monitoring of viewership habits to determine the types of programmes preferred to the viewers.
The UAE is the first Gulf state to use "TV Audience Measurement project". The government's participation in this project represented by The NMC and the Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (TRA) is a guarantee that the project is implemented according to the highest standards of transparency and credibility.
