2009 Annual Meetings, Istanbul
Boards of Governors

World Bank Group
International Monetary Fund
October 6-7, 2009—Istanbul Turkey
Annual Meetings: Istanbul

Information for Journalists

**IMPORTANT NOTICE**
Once your online application for press registration is cleared, you will receive an official confirmation letter by e-mail from the Joint Secretariat. Please print the letter and bring the printout to the Annual Meetings press registration when you pick up your press badge.
See more under Press Credentials Pick-up >

Press Registration Requirement
Online Press Registration
Visa Requirements
Press Credentials Pick-Up
Press Room Arrangements
Program of Seminars
Interview Requests
TV and Still Photo Opportunities
OMNEON Media Server
Availability of Still Photos and Video Clips
Satellite Trucks and Dishes
Hotels
Official Events
Press Conferences
Contact Information

Press Registration Requirement

All working press must have Annual Meetings credentials to attend the meetings.

To be accredited, you must present one of the following:

  1. Valid press credentials issued by national governments or authorities;

    OR

  2. Clear evidence that you are on assignment from a specific news organization or publication. This applies to all freelancers, including photographers. A valid assignment letter from that news organization, or publication, is required. Photographic agencies must provide clear evidence from a client news organization or publication.

    Submissions should be sent to:

    Press Registration
    Email: press@imf.org
    Fax: +1 202-623-4004

If such credentials are not held, or are in question, it will be at the discretion of the IMF and World Bank to determine whether access to the Annual Meetings is granted.

Online Press Registration

Journalists who meet the requirements above should register on-line at https://www-amsweb-ext.imf.org/press-ext/.

Registration for press credentials will close on October 5, 2009. For queries on registration, please contact media@imf.org, or call +1 202 623-7100.

The IMF or World Bank will not be responsible for journalists' travel costs and/or other expenses.

Visa Requirements

For visa information, please visit the Istanbul 2009 website for details.

http://www.istanbul2009turkey.org/istanbul2009/index.php

The lack of a valid visa may cause authorities to deny boarding at the port of embarkation, as well as delays in clearance with immigration authorities upon arrival at the port of entry into Turkey. It is strongly recommended that all participants check whether they require a visa to enter Turkey.

Press Credentials Pick-Up

Journalists who have been approved for accreditation can pick up credentials starting at 8:00 a.m. on September 28, at the Press Registration Desk, located at a pavilion on the ground level of the International Congress Center. (Local journalists who have been approved can start picking up credentials from 9:00 a.m. on September 24.) All journalists are required to present press credentials, photo identification, and the official confirmation letter that will be emailed to journalists after their online accreditation requests get cleared.

The Annual Meetings press credentials grant access to the Press Room, press conferences, the Program of Seminars, and the Plenary of the Annual Meetings of the World Bank and the IMF Boards of Governors.

Press Room Arrangements

The press room is located in the Rumeli Building of the Istanbul Congress Center. It will open on September 29, and close in the evening of Wednesday, October 7.

Technicians for financial news wires and other accredited news organizations may arrange for advanced access to the press room starting at 8:00 a.m. on September 28, through special arrangements. All media personnel, including technical staff, need to have Annual Meetings credentials to enter the venue.

The press room has limited space, and operates on a first come, first-served basis. Computers are not provided to journalists However, internet kiosks will be available in the press room. The Internet kiosks allow easy access to the IMF website and the World Bank Group website. The websites will have links to a joint Annual Meetings' site containing the schedule of press events, as well as transcripts, news releases, and other information as it becomes available.

Program of Seminars

Special Event : France 24 Debate : "What Now?: The World Beyond the Crisis."
October 2, 2009 - 1:00 - 2:30 pm (Doors close at 12.50pm)
Moderated by Raphael Kahane, France 24, the special event features:

Robert B. Zoellick, World Bank Group President
H. E. Sri Mulyani Indrawati, Minister of Finance, Indonesia
H.E. Mahmoud Mohieldin, Minister of Investment, Egypt
Ms. Eleni Gabre-Madhin, CEO, Ethiopian Commodity Exchange
Professor Paul Collier, Department of Economics, University of Oxford

Venue: Lutfi Kirdar Convention Center - Anadolu Auditorium

Global Financial Crisis: Can we Afford the Future? - October 3, 2009
The  seats in the audience will be open  to accredited participants and  the media on a first-come-first-served basis.  Anyone joining the audience is asked to take their seats between 0930 and 0950. The doors will be closed at 0950.  Since this is a BBC production, other broadcasters TV cameras will not be allowed in the room during the broadcast itself, but will be welcome before and after the recording. Clips of the broadcast can be taken off-air and used by other broadcasters. If clips are used by broadcasters they should not be internally edited and they should be accompanied by the on screen credit; "BBC World News". The entire World Debate will also available on the BBC's website and on IMF's website and the Program of Seminars website in due course.

Interview Requests

The World Bank and IMF media relations divisions handle requests for interviews with World Bank and IMF officials during the Meetings. However, the press officers do not service interview requests for official delegations to the Meetings. Those requests must be made directly to the delegations.

TV and Still Photo Opportunities

There will be photo opportunities at the start of ministerial committee meetings (e.g. International Monetary and Financial Committee and Development Committee), which may be pooled depending on demand.

OMNEON Media Server

The Turkish Host Government, in collaboration with the host broadcaster, Turkish Radio & Television (TRT) will provide an OMNEON Media Server system for the 2009 Istanbul Annual Meetings.

This system is designed to provide broadcasters (1) access to high quality video and audio, with the content available in real time to broadcast media outlets for their own editing and use (2) with the output of pool cameras operated by the host broadcaster, TRT (3) with various audio languages of events open to the media, such as press conferences, and the opening and closing plenary sessions.

Please find contact information below:

International News Exchange Coordination: Coordinator: Ms. Isıl KOC Coordinator, Mobile: 00 90 532 375 39 88, E-mail: trt.eurovision@trt.net.tr
Ankara Coordination Office: Mrs. Zeynep DURUSOY, Ankara Office: 00 90 312 463 4879 Ankara Fax: 00 90 312 490 51 79
International Satellite Operation: Contact Engineer: Mrs. Aylin OYKEN, ICR-Ankara:0090 312 463 48 83 & 0090 312 463 48 81, E-mail: Aylin.oyken@trt.net.tr or E-mail: eurotech@trt.net.tr
OMNEON SERVER System: Contact Engineer: Mr. Dogan SARI, Mobile: 0090 533 411 02 05, E-mail: dogan.sari@akfateknoloji.com

For detailed information regarding pool video and audio feeds for the World Bank/IMF meetings in Istanbul, please click on the following link.

Availability of Still Photos and Video Clips

A selection of still photos in high resolution will be available after each event on the Annual Meetings web site. In addition, broadcast quality video clips of selected press conferences will be available for downloading on www.thenewsmarket.com. This service is free of charge.

For World Bank Events, broadcast quality clips will be available for download at www.un.org/unifeed and on our World Bank FTP Server. For inquiries contact Mehreen Sheikh at the World Bank on (202) 458 7336 - msheikh1@worldbank.org

Satellite Trucks and Dishes

Broadcast companies that are interested in positioning satellite trucks or installing satellite dishes on the premises of the Annual Meetings at the Istanbul Congress Center need to contact: Mr.Orkun ULUGAY of the Turkish Treasury (office: +90.312.2046708, mobile: +90.534.7466621, e-mail: basin@hazine.gov.tr).

Space for satellite trucks will be limited. Arrangements for truck access and installation permits can be made through this contact.

All broadcast personnel (including technicians, truck operators, etc.) will need to have Annual Meetings press credentials in order to access the venue. Please submit applications for press credentials online at: https://www-amsweb-ext.imf.org/press-ext/

Hotels

Journalists who need accommodations during the Annual Meetings should visit the Istanbul 2009 web site for details:

http://www.istanbul2009turkey.org/istanbul2009/index.php

Official Events

Except for brief photo-opportunities at the start of committee meetings, press cannot attend those meetings. However, the Plenary sessions of the Boards of Governors of the IMF and World Bank Group are open to the press.

  • The International Monetary and Financial Committee of the IMF's Board of Governors, October 4.
  • The Development Committee, known officially as the Joint Ministerial Committee of the Boards of Governors of the Bank and the Fund on the Transfer of Real Resources to Developing Countries, October 5.

The Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors of the Group of Seven major industrialized countries typically meet at the time of the Annual Meetings.

Press Conferences

A schedule of the press conferences is posted and will be updated throughout the Meetings. Transcripts of all press briefings will be posted on the external web sites of the IMF and World Bank Group as soon as possible. Most briefings will also be web cast live.

IMF Media Briefing Center

The Media Briefing Center offers advance access to embargoed IMF information. It is a password-protected site for working journalists only.

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World Bank Online Media Briefing Center

The Media Briefing Center offers advance access to embargoed information of the World Bank. It is a password-protected site for working journalists only.

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Contact Information

World Bank Press Office
Name Contacts Fax E-mail
David Theis +1 202 458-8626 +1 202 522-2632 dtheis@worldbank.org
Amy Stilwell +1 202 458-4906 +1 202 522-2632 astilwell@worldbank.org
Camille Annette Funnell
(Broadcast)
+1 202 458-9369 +1 202 522-2632 cfunnell@worldbank.org
International Monetary Fund Press Office
Name Contacts Fax E-mail
William Murray +1 202 623-7064 +1 202 623-6772 wmurray@imf.org
Conny Lotze +1 202 623-9396 +1 202 623-6772 mailto:clotze@imf.org
Rani Vedurumudi
(Broadcast/Photos)
+1 202 623-7082 +1 202 623-6772 rvedurumudi@imf.org