BEIJING: Leaders of 25 media organisations from BRICS countries on Tuesday made a strong pitch for reaching consensus to help deal with issues like terrorism and climate change as well as rapid technological changes.

Addressing the first BRICS Media Summit which opened here on Tuesday, they also stressed that innovation is the only way for traditional media to survive in this digital age with the dissemination of information becoming mobile, intelligent, personal, complemented with the popularity of Internet and APPs.

The summit, with the theme “Innovation, Development, Cooperation and Trust”, was proposed by Xinhua and jointly organised by Brazil Communication Company, Russia Today International Information Agency, The Hindu Group and South Africa’s Independent Media.

Liu Qibao, head of the Publicity Department of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, in his address stressed that there was an urgent need for closer cooperation among BRICS media organisations to help deal with combating terrorism, climate change and other challenges.

Better coordination is needed in eliminating poverty and hunger, he told media representatives from India, Brazil, China, Russia and South Africa.

Mutual trust and cooperation is required in the media sector while keeping the bigger picture of state to state relations, he said.

Liu said traditional media, which is confronting numerous challenges, can open to new models to face the growing competition from the new media.

The Chinese government is willing to strengthen coordination and collaboration with the four countries and inject new life into the BRICS mechanism, he said.

The media of BRICS countries should promote peaceful development, cooperation and win-win, he said.

“Voices for justice and rationality should be amplified and the voices of emerging and developing countries should be strengthened, so as to make governance fairer and more reasonable,” Liu said.

Xinhua President Cai Mingzhao asked BRICS media organisations to deepen cooperation and seek development through innovation.

“It is advisable for BRICS media to carry out exchanges, learn from each other, become partners and lay a solid foundation for BRICS cooperation among the public,” he said. (PTI)