Tumas Fenech foundation celebrates third anniversary

The Tumas Fenech Foundation for Education in Journalism, which is celebrating its third anniversary, has organised nine courses, attended by over 100 people, since it was set up in 1999.

It is now working to ensure that the courses would be recognised by more local and foreign educational institutions.

Following discussions with the Stock Exchange, the foundation is setting up a contest for writing, with a financial theme, rewarded by a cash prize from the Malta Stock Exchange.

The foundation is also assisting the Malta Press Club to publish a journal of studies and papers on journalism. The idea is to create a body of knowledge on the subject for research purposes.

Following discussions with the University of Malta on the need to give more importance to journalism, more courses in the field have started.

During its third anniversary celebrations at Hilton Malta on Monday, the foundation will be presenting two papers - one by journalist Lino Agius and the other by influential Asian journalist Ayaz Amir, who will be in Malta specifically for the occasion.

Mr Amir is the main correspondent for the most widespread English language newspaper in Pakistan.

The foundation was set up by the Fenech family to work towards the education of the profession of journalism - a need that had long been felt in the country due to the fact that there were no educational institutions to train journalists.

Its chairman is former President Ugo Mifsud Bonnici.