14 October 2015, Rome – China's national news agency Xinhua is the latest news outlet to partner with FAO to raise awareness on hunger and food-related issues.
Speaking at a signing ceremony marking the new agreement, FAO Director General José Graziano da Silva recognized the critical role of media in communicating FAO’s areas of work to a wide audience and the unique position of Xinhua to reach out to millions of people.
“This is one of the most important media partnerships for FAO,” Graziano da Silva said. He added that the agreement with Xinhua is part of a larger effort to generate exposure for food security issues in all six of FAO’s official languages – including Russian, Arabic and Chinese.
“Putting information within reach at a global level is essential to supporting the eradication of hunger and malnutrition – and in that sense, Xinhua is a very valuable partner to help achieve these objective,” the FAO Director-General said.
“FAO has expert knowledge and authority in food security, agricultural cooperation and poverty alleviation,” said Long Xinnan, Vice President of Xinhua News Agency,” as well as strong ties with countries around the world – especially developing countries.”
Communication key in the fight against hunger
As part of the new agreement, Xinhua will expand its coverage on hunger, nutrition and the challenges food producers and consumers are facing. These include issues such as land use, food security, food safety, malnutrition, and food waste.
FAO, in turn, will make its knowledge and data resources available to journalists. Both agencies will also explore opportunities to hold joint events, such as conferences and workshops, focusing on the role of media in the fight against hunger.
The partnership with Xinhua follows similar successful collaborations with other international media outlets, including the Spanish news agency EFE, Emirates News Agency (WAM), the Guardian, Inter Press Service (IPS), National Geographic, Reuters, and the Russian news agency TASS.
Xinhua works from more than 30domestic bureaus and 180 overseas branches. It provides daily news to newspapers, radio and TV stations across China, along with content for overseas news outlets in 8 languages: Chinese, English, French, Spanish, Russian, Arabian, Portuguese and Japanese.