A Vietnam News Agency (VNA) delegation led by General Director Vu Viet Trang is taking part in the 18th General Assembly of the Organisation of Asia-Pacific News Agencies (OANA), which kicked off in the Iranian capital of Tehran on October 24.

The opening ceremony was attended by Iranian Minister of Culture and Islamic Guidance Mohammad Mehdi Esmaili, Vietnamese Ambassador to Iran Luong Quoc Huy, diplomatic representatives of some participating countries, and 22 delegations of regional news agencies.

In his opening remarks, Kim Hyeon-jun, an executive of the Republic of Korea’s Yonhap news agency - which is holding the OANA presidency, said the 18th General Assembly is an occasion to assess challenges and discuss measures for promoting bilateral and multilateral cooperation among member news agencies after an over-two-year hiatus caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Managing Director of the Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA) Ali Naderi highly valued the role of the media, which has comprehensively reflected the pandemic’s impacts on the world.

He said it’s time for news agencies to enhance connectivity and cooperation, and a new chapter begins in the fields of communications and media after the pandemic.

After the opening ceremony, VNA General Director Vu Viet Trang chaired a panel discussion on communications cooperation in the post-pandemic period. The discussion featured Vugar Seyidov from the AZERTAC News Agency of Azerbaijian and Toshimitsu Sawai from Kyodo News of Japan as the main speakers.

In her introductory speech, Trang held that news agencies have undergone trying times during the COVID-19 pandemic as their service revenue shrank strongly, most of development projects were delayed, and many media companies had no other choices but to shut down.

Besides, digital technology has changed the public’s information access from print newspapers to internet platforms, forcing news agencies to change accordingly, she went on, adding that the discussion was an occasion for regional news agencies to work out solutions and initiatives to surmount difficulties and move forwards.

On the first day of the 18th General Assembly, the 49th meeting of the OANA Executive Board and a photo exhibition on the post-pandemic life also took place./.