The Global Media and Information Literacy Week, commemorated annually, ended Sunday which is a major occasion for stakeholders to review and celebrate the progress achieved towards "Media and Information Literacy for All."
In 2021 the UN General Assembly decided to commemorate the week (October 24-31), citing the need for the dissemination of factual, timely, targeted, clear, accessible, multilingual and science-based information.
The resolution recognises that the substantial digital divide and data inequalities that exist among different countries and within them can be addressed in part by improving people's competencies to seek, receive and impart information in the digital realm, said the UN Information Centre in Dhaka Sunday.
The theme of this year was "Media and Information Literacy for the Public Good." During the Global Media and Information Literacy Week, the Department of Global Communication of the United Nations together with Purpose organised an event on fighting the Covid-19 Infodemic to highlight the lessons learned over the last 18 months around the Verified initiative.
Since May 2020, Verified has reached over 1 billion people around the world with reliable, accurate information about Covid-19.
In 2021, the campaign has moved towards a model that centres communications efforts on reaching vulnerable populations who have not yet been reached or have not responded to traditional public health communications.
The 90-minute virtual event was held Thursday and brought together panelists representing governments, the private sector, the entertainment industry and the Brazilian Olympic Team who have all been close collaborators in our work this year.
The aim of the event was to exchange experiences of Verified partners and collaborators and to further encourage their engagement with the Verified campaign.
In the current ecosystem of complex and sometimes contradictory messages and meanings, it is hard to conceive of the public good being advanced, if the public is disempowered in the face of opportunities and threats.
Each individual needs to be equipped with media and information literacy competencies to understand the stakes and to contribute to and benefit from information and communication opportunities.