Al Ahram group, the largest media group in Egypt, is studying the possibility of developing some editorial activity in Brazil. “We are discussing ways of organizing a partnership in the cultural area, mainly in book publication,” said Ibrahim Nafie the chairman of the company board and editor-in-chief of the paper that goes by the group’s name.
Nafie was in Brazil yesterday leading a delegation of Egyptian journalists. During his visit to the country he discussed the possibility of partnerships “with some people”.
“The idea is to bring some books here, turned to the descendents and to those interested in the Arab culture,” he said.
Before their arrival in Brazil, the group travelled to Mexico and Venezuela. Yesterday they went to Argentina and will then go on to Chile.
The objective is to write articles and reports showing a little about these countries before the summit between Arab and South American countries to be held next month, in Brasília, Brazil’s capital.
On Monday the journalists interviewed the Brazilian President, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, and ministers Celso Amorim (Foreign Relations) and Luiz Fernando Furlan (Industry and Foreign Trade).
Nafie stated that the meeting with Lula was “very interesting”. “We were interested mostly in the summit,” he said.
“Both regions were distant for a long time and this is the right time for the summit. It is a new game for the future of South-South relations,” he added. The interview with the Brazilian president will be published on Friday, April 8, in the Arabic edition of Al Ahram.
In the point of view of the journalist, for a long time the Arabs and South Americans have had their eyes turned to the United States and Europe.
“But we did not talk amongst ourselves,” he said. To him, the lack of dialogue between developing countries may create future problems. “If the country is still poor, other nations will lose interest. Nobody wants to talk to the poor,” he added.
Nafie also stated that organization of the summit is being praised by the governments of the Arab countries. “Most of the leaders will come and the size of the delegations will be very satisfactory,” he said.
Established in 1876, Al Ahram is the oldest newspaper in Egypt and, with a circulation of 1.2 million newspapers a day, is currently the largest daily paper in the Arab world.
In all, 10,500 people work in the group, 1,500 in 15 publications. Apart from the newspaper, the group also prints a weekly paper in English and French and female, juvenile, economy, politics and sports magazines, among others.
Among the companies in the group there is also an advertising company, a distribution company, operations in the information technology sector and a center of political and strategic studies, considered the most important of the kind in the region.
The paper also has an international edition, printed in London, Frankfurt and New York, and a version destined to the Arabian Gulf, published in Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates.
Nafie, who is 71 years old, is graduated in law, and has been the editor-in-chief of Al Ahram since 1979. He became the group president in 1984. Apart from that, he is the president of the Federation of Arab Journalists and a member of the Egyptian Shoura Assembly.
Translated by Mark Ament
ANBA – Brazil-Arab News Agency
www.anba.com.br