Jeddah (UNA) – The Executive Council of the Union of OIC News Agencies (UNA) held its 27th session online on Thursday, January 22, 2026, with the attendance and participation of representatives of the member states of the Executive Council.
The meeting began with a speech by His Excellency the Saudi Minister of Information and Chairman of the Executive Council, Mr. Salman bin Yousef Al-Dosari, which was delivered on his behalf by the Director General of the Union, Mr. Mohammed bin Abdulrab Al-Yami, in which His Excellency expressed his hope that this session would represent the launch of a new phase of effective media cooperation and joint work, in a way that contributes to achieving the aspirations of the member states of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation in the media field.
His Excellency the Minister stressed the importance of the role played by the media in promoting communication between peoples and consolidating common values, noting that news agencies, despite the technological developments and multiplicity of platforms in the media landscape, still enjoy the public’s trust as one of the most prominent reliable sources for obtaining accurate news, which necessitates working to develop them and improve their performance.
He stressed that joint work in the media field requires supporting and activating joint media institutions, foremost among them the Union of News Agencies of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, which represents a comprehensive coordination framework for news agencies in member states, and plays a pivotal role in unifying media discourse towards issues of common interest, stressing the continued support of the host country, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, for the Union to carry out its mission.
For his part, His Excellency the Secretary-General of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, Mr. Hussein Ibrahim Taha, in his speech delivered on his behalf by Ambassador Samir Bakr, appreciated the great efforts made by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in supporting the organization and its institutions, including the Union of News Agencies of the OIC Member States, praising the Kingdom’s pioneering role in promoting Islamic solidarity and activating joint action mechanisms.
The Secretary-General expressed his gratitude to His Excellency the Saudi Minister of Information, Chairman of the Executive Council of the Union, Mr. Salman bin Yousef Al-Dosari, for his guidance and supervision of the Union’s development plans in pursuit of institutional excellence and the improvement of media performance.
The General Secretariat expressed its welcome for the media programs and projects implemented by the Union for the benefit of the organization, its member states and institutions, with the aim of promoting the vision and mission of the organization, and enhancing its presence in regional and international forums, and during the various conferences and meetings of the organization.
He praised the Union’s efforts in supporting the issues of the Islamic world, especially the Palestinian cause, which received special attention from him through the organization of many events and programs aimed at countering the narratives of lies and misinformation by the Israeli occupation.
The Secretary-General called for support for the Union so that it can implement its plans in service of the issues of the Organization and its member states, and achieve more success in promoting joint Islamic media work, in line with the relevant decisions of the Council of Foreign Ministers, and contribute to correcting Islamic media discourse.
For his part, the Director General of the Union of OIC News Agencies (UNA), Professor Mohammed bin Abdulrab Al-Yami, affirmed that the meeting is being held at a sensitive stage that requires concerted efforts and enhanced coordination among joint media institutions to achieve the aspirations of member states in the media field and to express the message of Islamic solidarity.
He explained that the Union has been keen, since the last two sessions of the Executive Council and the General Assembly, to implement the outcomes and decisions of these two sessions, with a focus on priority issues, foremost among them the Palestinian issue.
Al-Yami stressed that UNA is a media arm supporting the Organization of Islamic Cooperation and its various bodies, noting the Union’s keenness to intensify media coverage of the organization’s conferences and institutions in professional ways that take into account the major shifts in media production patterns, which has made the Union a trusted and reliable reference for news related to the organization’s institutions and international media.
Al-Yami expressed his gratitude to the host country, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, for its unlimited support to the Union and its keenness to enable it to fulfill its mission and responsibilities, based on its historical commitment to promoting joint Islamic action and supporting its institutions in all fields.
He also thanked the member states that regularly pay their contributions, and those that have recently taken the initiative to pay their contributions, calling on all member states to expedite the payment of contributions in order to benefit from the Union’s services.
Al-Yami concluded his speech by thanking His Excellency the Chairman of the Executive Council, Minister of Information, Mr. Salman Al-Dossari, for his tireless efforts in following up on the work of the Union and its activities, and for his continuous encouragement of its employees.
Following that, the meeting discussed the topics and issues on its agenda, and expressed its views on them.
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