The General-Director of the Ministry of Information, Culture and Tourism Mr. Abdullahi Hayer Duale, sent a congratulatory message to all Somali media workers on the occasion of the 49th Anniversary of Somali Press Day, SONNA reported.
Somali Media Day was designated after the issuance of the first Somali-written newspaper in the country “October Star”, which falls on January 21 each year.
Mr. Duale praised the significant role played by the media in promoting the Somali language, stressing that the media educates the society.
The first newspaper written in Somali language was printed and circulated on 21 January 1973.
In 1972, a decision was made to use the Latin alphabet in writing the Somali language, with some minor changes in word division, followed by the implementation of the decision to write the Somali language in 1973.