Grine committed to assisting Algerian press in modernization plans

Minister of Communication, Hamid Grine, stressed Thursday in Algiers his plan aims to "assist " the public press in its modernization process, mainly Algeria Press Service (APS ) as he "supports" its projects, in addition to the professionalize of the private press.
"My project aims to assist public press in its modernization process including APS, whose Director General has a lot of projects I totally support, and to professionalize private press," Grine said at a meeting with the Director General of APS, Abdelhamid Kacha.
 The meeting closes the series of meetings initiated by the Minister of Communication with officials of the press organs and public and private media.
In this regard, Grine said this approach will lead to "the setting up a number of structures" which actually began with the installation of the Interim Commission for the issue of the professional journalist card.
"Furthermore, the regulatory authority of the broadcasting activity, the regulatory authority of the press, the board of print media and the ethics board will also be set up," Grine stressed, adding that "all these bodies will help clean the press field, to put safeguards and to professionalize it."
Besides, his department is working on these projects which will be implemented by 2015, while the accompanying training courses that have already started in Algiers with sessions devoted to investigative journalism will soon continue in Oran and Constantine on the theme of regional information of proximity.
The minister said the public authorities’ requirements for APS are "much higher" than other public bodies, because "the agency has accustomed us to a high level of competence."
"High level skills means high-level requirements," stated Grine who paid tribute to "all journalists of APS for their writing style and humble posture."
"APS is doing its job properly," said the minister expressing his satisfaction with the will of the General Director for "changing and modernizing the agency."