Daily Times

International Islamic University Islamabad (IIUI) & The All Pakistan Newspapers and Electronic Media Employees Confederation (APNEC) in an introductory session and a constructive dialogue at university, have agreed to foster career developing equal opportunities for all the segments of society.

Renowned journalists and educationists called for nurturing youth as per need of the hour keeping in view the new media trends such as positive use of social media. The dialogue also witnessed the announcement of honorary Presidentship of APNEC to IIUI President, H.E. Hathal Hamoud Alotaibi in recognition of his untiring services in the education sector across the Muslim world. In the session, organized by the Department of Protocol & Public Relations (P&PR) of IIUI, both sides, reiterating the mutual cooperation, agreed to take initiatives for strengthening the relationship between media and education. Renowned media persons and elected representatives of APNEC from Karachi, Lahore, Quetta and across the country also participated through Web link during the session.

Both the IIUI and APNEC in the interactive session explored avenues for collaboration and discussed the significant role of media in promoting the university’s ideology at both national and international levels.

During the dialogue, the focus was on addressing various segments of society, with special emphasis on empowering the youth by providing equal opportunities for education and training. Both sides shared the vision of utilizing the power of the latest media platforms to spread positive messages and uphold constitutional values, rather than perpetuating negativity.

Participants during the discussion vowed that the youth would be provided with equal opportunities, and awareness training workshops for young people would be conducted. These workshops aim to enable them to learn the use of the latest media tools. It is believed that such training workshops for youngsters would help them play a positive role in society and contribute to building a positive image of Pakistan.

Speaking on the occasion, recently elected Chairman, Mr. Muhammad Siddique Anzar and representatives from APNEC expressed their commitment to supporting the university’s endeavors in creating a conducive learning environment for students, while also highlighting the importance of responsible journalism. He emphasized the need for accurate reporting and constructive engagement with the society, especially the younger generation.

Mr. Siddique Anzar lauded leadership of IIU President as he faced many challenges initially at the time of his appointment at IIUI. He said that the vision of the university’s President shall further strengthen Pak Saudi ties which will benefit both countries. He specially thanked the government of Saudi Arabia for the assistance of IIUI and its generous contribution in the education sector.

H.E. Dr. Hathal Hamoud Alotaibi, President, IIU appreciated the willingness of APNEC to collaborate and acknowledged the valuable contribution media can make in shaping public opinion and disseminating information effectively. H.E. Dr. Hathal emphasized that this collaboration would pave the way for closer ties between the university and the media industry, leading to enhanced outreach and engagement with a broader audience. The IIUI President said upon joining the university, we had a number of challenges that are addressed in the vision of the newly prepared university’s strategic plan. The university management’s prime focus was academic excellence and infrastructural development. He added that in both fields the university is doing wonders as now IIUI stands in top 50 universities across the world and we also inaugurated new academic blocks in addition to the launch of a campus management system.

Prof. Dr. Samina Malik, Vice President (Female Campus) said that this initiative among the media and university was the need of hour while Public Relations has taken a good step in this regard. She apprised of the distinctions of IIUI and its recent remarkable performance in rankings. She said journalism is a sacred occupation that demands honesty and impartiality. She said experienced journalists must inculcate these values in the university graduates through partnerships.

Prof. Dr. Nabi Bux Jumani, Vice President (A&F), IIUI termed the activity a vital step to enhance mutual ties among media and university. He congratulated the representatives of APNEC on this occasion and said that the university shall provide maximum support to children of journalists and media persons during their admissions in this institutions.

On this occasion, Mr. Nasir Farid, In-Charge (P&PR) said that this collaboration between APNEC and the P&PR Department at IIUI is expected to open new doors for cooperation, knowledge sharing, and joint initiatives in the field of education and media. He anticipated that this partnership would yield fruitful results in the promotion of education, training, and positive media practices in the shape of regular workshops, seminars and conferences which would ultimately be benefitting society as a whole. He added that during the tenure of Dr. Hathal the university is progressing by leaps and bounds and new blocks have been inaugurated recently while the system of providing student’s scholarships is the real success story of the present era under his leadership through which deserving students have been awarded financial coverage purely on merit during their studies.

On the occasion Mr. Al Hassan, Assistant Director (Protocol) proposed to organize a conference in near future to further strengthen mutual ties among media and university. He highlighted the vision of the Worthy President’s Strategic Plan and briefed the significant steps taken by the leadership. He said youth must be trained on media ethics through joint training collaborations by media departments of varsities and journalist fraternity.

The introductory session was also joined by Prof. Dr. Nabi Bux Jumani, Vice President (A&F) and Prof. Dr. Samina Malik, Vice President Female Campus, IIUI. At the end of the session APNEC and IIU exchanged memorable.