In her welcoming remarks, Dr. Aliaa Al-Mahdy, the Dean of the Faculty of Economics and Political Science, emphasized the importance of political education and highlighted the contribution of her institute in this regard. FNF’s Regional Director, Dr. Ronald Meinardus mentioned the "pluralistic media landscape in Egypt" and highlighted the special responsibility of journalists while reporting and commenting on political affairs.

One session of the workshop was dedicated to the situation of the media in Germany. Here, Dr. Meinardus, who for many years has held senior positions in German public radio, presented the situation in Europe with special references to the German system of training of journalists.

The workshop included a number of prominent speakers and praciticioners, among them Farida Al-Nakash, Editor in Chief of Al-Ahly Newspaper, Dr. Hassan Abu Taleb, Editing Manager of Al Ahram Newspaper and Hazem Mounir, Chairman of the Egyptian Organization for Training and Human Rights.

Among the issues discussed were the role of civil society concerning political reforms, ways to activate the party system in Egypt in the light of the experiences of other countries and the international financial crisis and its impact on the Egyptian economy. FNF and Cairo University plan to continue this educational program for young Egyptian media workers in the new year.