The Minister of Information, Culture, and Tourism of the Federal Government of Somalia, Mr. Abdifatah Qasim Mohamud, held a meeting today at his office with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Representative for Somalia, Mr. Christophoros Politis.
Upon his arrival at the Ministry’s headquarters, the UNDP Representative was welcomed by the Ministry’s Director General, Mr. Abdullahi Hayir Duale. He also visited the National Media facilities and the Radio Mogadishu historical archives, where he inspected ongoing operations and the efforts being made to preserve the historical heritage of Somali media.
The meeting between the Minister and the UNDP Representative focused on strengthening the collaborative relationship between the Ministry and the UNDP, as well as establishing a sustained partnership to support the Ministry’s priorities in media, strategic communication, public awareness, culture, and tourism.
The two sides specifically discussed cooperation regarding media capacity building, public awareness and civic orientation, support for election-related media and outreach, countering disinformation and misinformation, preventing and countering violent extremism (PCVE), and the development and promotion of Somali culture and tourism. The Minister highlighted the importance of transforming the dialogue between the two sides into tangible technical cooperation by establishing priorities, an implementation plan, and a consistent coordination mechanism for the partnership between the Ministry and the UNDP. Both parties agreed to advance technical discussions to translate identified cooperation opportunities into effective programs and activities.
Representing the Ministry at the meeting were Director General Abdullahi Hayir Duale, Director of the Strategy and Media Relations Department Abdishakur Ali Ahmed, and the Director of the Somali National News Agency (SONNA), Ismail Mukhtar Omar. Officials from the UNDP’s Government Relations, Policy, and Media divisions also participated in the meeting.
