Riyadh, January 10, 2022, SPA -- Under the patronage of Acting Minister of Media and Chairman of the Board of Directors of Saudi Press Agency (SPA) Dr. Majid bin Abdullah Al-Qasabi, SPA is scheduled tomorrow in Riyadh to host the two-day 48th Conference of the General Assembly of the Federation of Arab News Agencies (FANA) with the participation of heads of member agencies in FANA. SPA President Fahd bin Hassan Al Aqran said that the conference comes as a continuation of efforts being exerted by FANA that is now among the top three international news organizations, and to push forward joint efforts aimed at developing the work of member agencies and improving their roles as influential source, at a time private news institutions and wide spaces of publications through modern technologies imposed a new challenge related to the accuracy of the content of media messages. Al Aqran welcomed heads of member agencies at FANA to their second country the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia that has always been and still a main supporter for the joint Arab action in various fields, including the media sector. He stressed that the motto of the conference (The role of a news agency in addressing fake news) reflects the importance of these media institutions and their influence at the internal and external levels as a reliable source for the transfer and flow of information, stressing the significance of joining efforts among FANA members to realize a development leap in performance and tools of the media discourse. SPA President also said that amidst media developments and changes, the responsibilities of news agencies are doubled to preserve their gains and move forward to overcome challenges in light of the goals of the federation. The conference will be discussing means to develop media performance for member agencies, enhance their presence in the international media arena and review FANA's activities last year and the 2022 action program. The conference will also see the election of FANA president, two vice presidents, members of the general assembly and the secretary general, in addition to announcing the agencies that won the awards of the best report and photo. --SPA 15:10 LOCAL TIME 12:10 GMT 0014 www.spa.gov.sa/w1676293