A Bahraini proposal to establish a Gulf News Agencies Union won support yesterday as heads of Gulf news agencies held their 16th meeting at the GCC general secretariat in Riyadh.

The delegations also welcomed a proposal for Bahrain to host the news establishment, according to the report in the Gulf Daily News.

They tasked Bahrain News Agency (BNA) to conduct a thorough study into the proposed project to be submitted to the GCC information ministers for more scrutiny and approval.

BNA director Mohannad Suleiman, who chaired the meeting, said the proposal to establish the news union won wide support, adding that a meeting would be held in September to discuss the scheme in detail.

He stressed the importance of the proposed project which comes in line with GCC leaders' aspirations to move from the phase of co-operation to the stage of full-fledged union, stressing the need for more co-ordination amid mounting challenges.

The participants also hailed the launch of the Bahrain Award for Gulf News Agencies, which comes as part of the first Gulf Media Forum, scheduled to be held in Bahrain.

The session was attended by GCC assistant unde-rsecretary for cultural and media affairs Khalid Al Ghassani, Kuwait News Agency chairman and director-general Shaikh Mubarak Al Sabah, Saudi Press Agency chairman Abdullah Al Hussain, Oman News Agency acting director-general Dr Mohammed Al Arimi, Qatar News Agency editor-in-chief and director-general Ahmed Al Buainain and UAE News Agency representative Jamal Nasser. – TradeArabia News Service