THE European Union (EU) has committed Euro 25,000 to support the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) in re-establishing the Media Monitoring Unit (MMU).Director of the Americas Department in the European External Action Service, Roland Schaefer, who is in Guyana for a two-day working visit, and Chairman of GECOM, Dr. Steve Surujbally, endorsed the initiative yesterday at GECOM’s Headquarters in Kingston, Georgetown.
The funding towards the re-establishment of the MMU comes from the Governance component of the Technical Assistance Facility of the 10th European Development Fund. Funding has also been given by the EU from this instrument to provide two international experts to support GECOM in its capacity-building activities.
Total EU funding in support of GECOM-related activities ahead of the forthcoming elections amounts to Euro 300,000. The initiatives were undertaken as a result of requests by GECOM and the Government of Guyana.
The MMU was initially established in 2001, but was revitalised in 2006, and, since, has come to be “accepted as an objective and credible arbiter”, in media practices.
The Unit has established a Code of Conduct for the media on reporting; commenced training sessions on reporting during the pre-, peri- and post-elections period, and will monitor the media’s reporting on the elections.