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Al-Dosari Honors Winners of 4th Media Excellence Award

The fourth edition of the Media Excellence Award was held in Riyadh on Sunday. (Bashir Saleh)
The fourth edition of the Media Excellence Award was held in Riyadh on Sunday. (Bashir Saleh)
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Al-Dosari Honors Winners of 4th Media Excellence Award

The fourth edition of the Media Excellence Award was held in Riyadh on Sunday. (Bashir Saleh)
The fourth edition of the Media Excellence Award was held in Riyadh on Sunday. (Bashir Saleh)

Saudi Minister of Information Salman bin Yousef Al-Dosari honored the winners of the fourth edition of the Media Excellence Award, during a ceremony held in Riyadh on Sunday.

Saudi Poet Khalaf bin Hazal was awarded the Special Honor for his patriotic songs and his valuable poetic collection that has been popular in Saudi Arabia for decades.

The Independent Arabia newspaper won the Press Material Award for the piece "Journalism in the Language of Infographics."

Al-Dosari also honored the official spokesman for the Ministry of Health, Dr. Mohammad Al-Abdulaali, who played an important role in spreading awareness, clarifying facts and enhancing public safety during the Covid-19 pandemic.

The award this year saw the qualification of nearly 20 entries, out of 2,355, to the final stage to compete across six media platforms. The participating government agencies exceeded 90, while entries from the private and non-profit sectors totaled more than 65.

The Saudi Press Agency (SPA) won the Photography Award for the photo "A Picture for a Thousand Reports," which showed a member of the Saudi military during the evacuation of people affected by the war in Sudan.

The Ministry of National Guard won the Creative Video Award, while the Saudi Ministry of Interior received the Excellence Award in Government Media for its distinguished media contribution to the security and safety of society.

Riyadh Radio won the Audio Producer Award and the Television Producer Award went to the Saudi Channel for its program titled "Earth."

The ceremony featured a short film about the development media over the past year. It reviewed the programs, activities and achievements that contributed to a qualitative leap in media. The film highlighted the efforts of the Media Forum, the periodic government conference, and the "Treasures" series that sheds light on unique Saudi stories.

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Nepal Sharply Hikes Permit Fee for Everest Climbers 

Mount Everest, the world highest peak, and other peaks of the Himalayan range are seen through an aircraft window during a mountain flight from Kathmandu, Nepal January 15, 2020. (Reuters) 
Mount Everest, the world highest peak, and other peaks of the Himalayan range are seen through an aircraft window during a mountain flight from Kathmandu, Nepal January 15, 2020. (Reuters) 
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Nepal Sharply Hikes Permit Fee for Everest Climbers 

Mount Everest, the world highest peak, and other peaks of the Himalayan range are seen through an aircraft window during a mountain flight from Kathmandu, Nepal January 15, 2020. (Reuters) 
Mount Everest, the world highest peak, and other peaks of the Himalayan range are seen through an aircraft window during a mountain flight from Kathmandu, Nepal January 15, 2020. (Reuters) 

Nepal will increase the permit fees for climbing Mount Everest by more than 35%, making the world’s tallest peak more expensive for mountaineers for the first time in nearly a decade, officials said on Wednesday.

Income from permit fees and other spending by foreign climbers is a key source of revenue and employment for the cash-strapped nation, home to eight of the world’s 14 highest mountains, including Mount Everest.

A permit to climb the 8,849 meter (29,032 feet) Mount Everest will cost $15,000, said Narayan Prasad Regmi, director general of the Department of Tourism, announcing a 36% rise in the $11,000 fee that has been in place for nearly a decade.

"The royalty (permit fees) had not been reviewed for a long time. We have updated them now," Regmi told Reuters.

The new rate will come into effect from September and apply for the popular climbing April-May season along the standard South East Ridge, or South Col route, pioneered by New Zealander Sir Edmund Hillary and Sherpa Tenzing Norgay in 1953.

Fees for the less popular September-November season and the rarely climbed December-February season will also increase by 36%, to $7,500 and $3,750 respectively.

Some expedition organizers said the increase, under discussion since last year, was unlikely to discourage climbers. About 300 permits are issued each year for Everest.

"We expected this hike in permit fees," said Lukas Furtenbach of Austria-based expedition organizer, Furtenbach Adventures.

He said it was an "understandable step" from the government of Nepal. "I am sure the additional funds will be somehow used to protect the environment and improve safety on Everest," Furtenbach said.

Regmi did not say what the extra revenue would be used for.

Hundreds of climbers try to scale Mount Everest and several other Himalayan peaks every year.

Nepal is often criticized by mountaineering experts for allowing too many climbers on Everest and doing little to keep it clean or to ensure climbers' safety.

Regmi said cleaning campaigns were organized to collect garbage and rope fixing as well as other safety measures were undertaken regularly.

Climbers returning from Everest say the mountain is becoming increasingly dry and rocky with less snow or other precipitation, which experts say could be due to global warming or other environmental changes.