EVENTS / FESTIVALS: Roger Moore to attend Muscat film festival

MUSCAT — Next month's Muscat International Film Festival (MIFF) has received a shot in the arm with the announcement that Sir Roger Moore, the legendary former James Bond star, will be visiting the city during the festival.
"It is a dream come true for us and it will be an honour to host this great Bond figure in Oman," Dr Khalid Al Zadjali, Chairman of the Oman Film Society (OFS) and MIFF, said, adding: "Sir Roger is not just a famous star, he is a man with a golden heart — as he is also a goodwill ambassador of the Unicef."

The 7^th MIFF, from March 24 to 31, the biggest so far, has attracted participation from more than 90 countries, including the US, the UK, France, Japan, China, India, Egypt, Morocco, Syria, Egypt and Iran.

Moore, who portrayed British secret agent James Bond in seven films from 1973 to 1985 and voted 'Best Bond' in the Academy Awards poll in 2008, will be honoured at the closing ceremony of the festival on March 31, coinciding with international celebrations of 007's 50^th anniversary.

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EVENTS: Youth to be focus of 29-day Muscat Festival (OMAN)

Muscat: There will be a focus on education, fun and entertainment for the youth during the 29-day Muscat Festival, to be held simultaneously at two venues from January 26.

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EVENTS / CONFERENCES / WORKSHOPS: Media workshop highlights children’s rights (OMAN)

MUSCAT — The Ministry of Social Development organised the media workshop on spreading awareness on children's rights yesterday at the City Season Hotel. The workshop was presided over by Ali bin Khalfan al Jabri, Under-Secretary of the Information Ministry. This event is a joint venture between the Child Affairs Department at the Ministry of Social Development and the Arab Council for Childhood and Development (ACCD) and Arab Gulf Programme for Development (AGFUND).

The workshop is held with participation of 40 media personnel from different media and government bodies. During the opening ceremony, Dr Yahya bin Mohammed al Hinai, Director-General of the Directorate-General of Family Development at the Ministry of Social Development, pointed out: "Throughout the past three decades, children rights are given high priority as well as supporting all issues related to children, women and family in strategic plans in the national and regional levels. We hope this will back all the efforts that have been made to support children affairs in the Sultanate".

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NEWS: Youth presents recommendations to world leaders at UN forum

By Kabeer Yousuf - DOHA — At the Fourth Forum of the Alliance of Civilisations in Doha, Qatar, a diverse group of 400 young leaders met yesterday to debate key aspects of cross-cultural and inter-religious understanding during the Youth Preparatory Event, which took place at the newly inaugurated Qatar National Convention Centre (QNCC).

Assigned by His Majesty Sultan Qaboos, Shaikh Abdullah bin Mohammed al Salmy, Minister of Awqaf and Religious Affairs, is heading the country at the Forum. The main outcome of the discussions during the youth event was the drafting of recommendations to world leaders on specific policies that affect the lives of young people, and on ways to enhance and build on the achievement of young people in bridging cultural divides.

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NEWS / EVENTS: Youth Summit delves deep into digital media trends

Muscat: Day Three of Muscat Youth Summit (MYS) gave the 200-plus participants an insight into the fast changing landscape of mainstream media as well as digital and social media. 

“Over the past few years social media has had a significant impact on people’s daily lives. The global conversation we now have because of Facebook, Twitter and YouTube,now the second largest search engine in the world after Google, would have been unimaginable 10 years ago. 

In short, social and digital media communication tools are profoundly changing our lives and how we interact with one another and the world around us,” said Raed Dawood of Nawras and a strategic partner of this year’s Muscat Youth Summit.

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NEWS: Omani Youth Hooked to Digital World (MIDDLE EAST)

14 December 2009

MUSCAT — The new digital culture and media landscape that Oman-based youth are using in their everyday lives came under the spotlight at the first Muscat Youth Summit held here.

Presentations and workshops highlighted the fact the country’s youth are growing up in a connected world of Internet access and mobile interactivity.

“From watching videos on YouTube to spending hours connected to social network sites like Facebook and Bebo, most young Omanis engage with social media on a daily basis,” Alya Al Hosni, the Summit Project Manager, observed, adding: “Research suggests that the time young people are spending online is fast overtaking time spent watching TV, and many conventional forms of communication are loosing out to the online world.”

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