The 60th ABU General Assembly and Associated Meetings have concluded in Seoul, South Korea, with the election of Türkiye’s Professor Mehmet Zahid Sobaci, TRT Director General, as ABU President and Japan’s Inoue Tatsuhiko, Executive Vice President of NHK, as Vice President.

Professor Sobaci fills the vacancy left by Masagaki Satoru, who stepped down as President of ABU after concluding his term as Executive Vice President of Japan’s public broadcaster NHK on 15 February 2023.

Inoue Tatsuhiko fills the vacancy left by South Korea’s Kim Eui-chul, who left his position as President and CEO of KBS on 13 September 2023.

With the election of these two positions, ABU’s leadership now includes Professor Mehmet Zahid Sobaci as President, along with Vice Presidents -Dr Yan Chengsheng, Director General of International Cooperation Department, National Radio & Television Administration of China; Mr Sunil, Additional Director General (Global Outreach) and Head of International Relations, All India Radio, Prasar Bharati; and Mr Inoue Tatsuhiko, Executive Vice President of NHK.

The final day of the General Assembly featured super panels and professional discussions, as well as a restricted plenary session for members.

The Super Panel Forums tackled urgent issues surrounding sustainability in the public broadcasting and media industry, especially at a time of heightened uncertainties that include climate change, global economic turmoil, and a worldwide health crisis.

The first Super Panel Session, titled “What Comes Next?” boasted a line-up of experts from big global technology companies specialising in Urban Air Mobility (UAM), Robotics, and the Art of Generative AI.

The second Super Panel Session, titled “How Can We Secure Sustainability?” saw lively discussions from leading figures from international media organisations, including David Jordan of the BBC, Kristian Porter, CEO of the Public Media Alliance (PMA) and Ahmed Nadeem, Secretary-General of the ABU.

The two-day General Assembly, along with the preceding associated meetings, were hosted by the Korean Broadcasting System (KBS), held in conjunction with its 50th anniversary of public broadcasting in Korea.

TRT Türkiye was announced as the host for next year’s General Assembly and associated meetings, with the gatherings slated to take place in the historic city of Istanbul.