A conference entitled 'Communicating poverty' will be held at the Excelsior Hotel, Floriana, on Saturday. A panel will discuss the role of print, broadcast and online media to effectively communicate messages about the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and in raising public interest and strengthening support to alleviate poverty.

Those wishing to attend may register by sending an e-mail to Monique Falzon, project manager from SOS Malta, on monique.falzon@sosmalta.org or by calling 2124 4123.

The conference forms part of a project entitled 'Media engagement in development issues and promotion' (Medip), financed by the European Commission, which aims to foster public awareness of the lack of media coverage on the global fight against poverty.

Project participants include SOS Malta, the Foundation for Development of Democratic Rights from Hungary, the European Institute of Cyprus, Slovene Philanthropy, the Civil Society Development Foundation in Romania and the Jaan Tonisson Institute of Estonia.

During the conference, documentaries produced for the Medip project and filmed in Uganda will be screened and discussed.

Last February, NGO and media professionals from new EU member states took part in a three-day training seminar in Budapest, Hungary, as part of the project. During the event, discussions and workshops were held on communication strategies between NGOs and the media, as well as the interpretation of development-related issues in the framework of the MDGs.

Ms Falzon said the workshop proved fruitful as it enabled the participants to develop a deeper understanding of the work both the media and non-governmental development organisations have to achieve to better inform and educate the public on development issues.

These include the need to eradicate extreme poverty and the urgent need for greater access to clean water facilities in developing countries.

The seminar also enabled participants to discuss difficulties NGOs and journalists encounter to ensure that development and poverty-related stories are regularly covered in the local media.

The EU has declared 2010 as the European year for combating poverty and social inclusion.

At the UN Millennium Summit in 2000, 189 countries committed to the realisation of eight goals, which came to be known as the MDGs. These countries signed the Millennium Declaration promising to "free men, women and children from the dehumanising conditions of extreme poverty".