The celebration is organized in partnership with the Mauritanian Union of Journalists, the Network of Women Journalists, the National Commission of Mauritania for UNESCO, the Mauritanian Ministry of Communication and the World Bank. It will provide an occasion to raise awareness about the importance of the public’s right to know and be informed for furthering transparency, democracy and development.

Through a series of round tables, participants will identify obstacles in the exercise of freedom of information and discuss the role of media as a platform for democratic discourse. The event will be associated with the launch of Story-Based Inquiry: A Manual for Investigative Journalists, produced by UNESCO and the Arab Reporters for Investigative Journalism (ARIJ). This Manual provides basic methods and techniques in investigative journalism, filling a gap in the literature of the profession.

The celebration of the Day will end up with the announcement of the winner of the sub-regional competition of articles on the theme of the Day. Articles submitted by Maghreb journalists on the current situation and challenges of the freedom of information in their countries were evaluated by a high level panel of journalists and are now published on the website of UNESCO’s Rabat Office.