General Assembly
The General Assembly is the sovereign body of GFMD.
Frequency of meetings
The GFMD General Assembly meets every four years to elect a new Steering Committee. *
Since 2022 -- as a consequence of GFMD's Brussels registration -- GFMD has also held annual meetings of its members to approve annual audited accounts and other administrative matters.
* In 2020 GFMD members -- following an online annual meeting -- voted to postpone voting for a new Steering Committee until 2021 due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Upcoming meetings
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To help new members and those unfamiliar with the processes and rules that govern GFMD's General Assembly we have put together some answers to frequently asked questions.
Please note that the answers to these questions are abridged summaries. Full details are available in the GFMD Constitution.
Is the General Assembly an in-person meeting?
Yes. Every four years the GFMD General Assembly takes place in person to elect a new Steering Committee.
The most recent in-person General Assembly took place in Tirana, Albania in 2021. The next in-person meeting will take place in 2025.
The quadrennial in-person General Assembly normally takes place alongside a conference for the wider media development and journalism support community that involves - among others - donors, partners, and supporters, as well as GFMD members.
Does the General Assembly meet between in-person meetings?
Yes. Under GFMD's constitution and the rules related to GFMD's registration in Brussels, the General Assembly annually meets online in the three years between in-person meetings.
What is the General Assembly?
The General Assembly is the sovereign body of the GFMD and brings together all General Members.
The General Assembly is the sovereign body of the GFMD and brings together all members, as well as partners and supporters, provided that only general members have the right to vote at General Assembly meetings.
The General Assembly:
Approves annual financial report, including remuneration of members of the Executive Committee and the Steering Committee, the appointment of auditors or representatives and their fees, and the annual budget.
The programme is prepared by the Steering Committee in consultation with members.
Can only GFMD members attend the GFMD General Assembly?
Yes. The General Assembly is constitutionally mandated. Attendance and voting rights are accorded only to GFMD general members. Its procedures are governed by the GFMD Constitution. GFMD Affiliate Members can attend but do not have voting rights.
Where has GFMD held in-person General Assembly meetings?
Meetings of the General Assembly (and a wider conference alongside it) have previously taken place in Amman (2005), Athens (2008), Makhanda/Grahamstown (2012), Jakarta, (2016), and Tirana (2021)*.
* Delayed by a year due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Has the General Assembly been called different things in the past?
No. However, the conference that often occurs at the same as the General Assembly has been referred to in different ways, including:
Global Forum for Media Development (also known as the Global Forum).
The World Forum for Media Development in 2016 in Jakarta.
To avoid confusion the Secretariat proposes that future meetings be referred to using the following naming conventions:
Global Forum for Media Development - General Assembly - Tirana, 2021
The Global Forum for Media Development's General Assembly will take place in Tirana in 2021.
The General Assembly of the Global Forum for Media Development of 2021 took place in Tirana, Albania.
What happens at the General Assembly?
The General Assembly:
Receives and approves a financial and activity report from the Steering Committee (the report is prepared by the Secretariat)
Deals with appeals on decisions of the Steering Committee.
Deals with matters related to the amendment of the constitution.
Decides on policy and overall strategy and priorities
Elects the Steering Committee.
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