Dutch parliamentarians discuss the media in developing countries

The Dutch Parliament (Second Chamber) would this week, discuss the motion to support the media in developing countries to be independent and also to focus on developmental issues instead of the mainly political and commercial news.

The need for the support is one of the 14 proposals adopted by an organization called: The Third Chamber, a Netherlands based organization that advocates for strengthened political support for development cooperation between Europe on one hand and the developing countries on the other.

The Third Chamber, which acts as a shadow parliament in the Netherlands is made up of 150 volunteers: 120 from the Netherlands and 30 representing the developing countries.

All the members of The Third Chamber work on one or more proposals to improve the Dutch policy for international development cooperation.

The proposal titled: "Good Governance through Support free and Independent media in developing countries," was jointly done by Mr Niek Jaspers, a retired medical doctor who is currently working on providing preventive healthcare for the elderly in the Netherlands and Miss Hannah Asomaning, a Ghanaian Journalist with the Ghana News Agency (GNA).

The 14 proposals adopted by the Third Chamber would be offered to the Dutch government, politicians and companies to source funding for its implementation in the developing countries.

Other proposals adopted by the Third Chamber to support developing countries includes: support for HIV/AIDS patients, Bursaries for teachers, support for Education and Enterprise, improving local farming, as a key to development and sustainable tourism as an instrument for poverty alleviation.

Mr Jos Van Gennip, Chairman of the Netherlands National Commission for International and Sustainable Development (NCDO), which funds The Third Chamber, said the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals by the year 2015 as formulated by the United Nations depended largely on the role of Europe in developing countries.

The Third Chamber works within the framework of the United Nations (UN) Millennium Development Goals.