Happy New Year to all! Tomorrow we bid 2018 farewell, and welcome in a new year, extending good wishes to one another, and hoping that our Egypt basks in security and blessings. We pray for the Lord to protect Egypt and her people, and to help us ride the challenges of reform and development, to reap the fruit in prosperity.
In my editorial last Sunday, I reminded my readers that Watani had in December 2017 completed 59 years in the press and was embarking on its 60th year. To mark the milestone, Watani throughout 2018 treated its readers to flashbacks of material it had printed throughout the last 10 years, and promised that its 60th year would bring in enhanced content produced by the unwavering zeal of its editors and reporters.
Now that Watani is 60 years old, we plan to answer our readers aspirations by introducing new sections and bringing back old sections that had been lifted off the paper for various reasons.
Today, I introduce my readers to features of Watani’s new editorial map which will go into effect starting the second week of January, since Watani’s first issue of the year is usually dedicated to the Feast of the Nativity, celebrated by the Copts on 7 January.
The Opinion Page will reappear in the 2019 Watani, featuring opinion pieces by a number of outstanding columnists and intellectuals. Part of the page will be dedicated for the writings of Watani’s founder Antoun Sidhom (1915 – 1995), which for two decades from 1975 till 1995 appeared on the paper’s front page, and which are today as fresh and timely as though written now. From time to time, we will republish opinion pieces that prominent intellectuals and columnists had contributed to Watani during the first three decades of her age.
The Governorates Page which covers the various regions of Egypt, and which has always had a remarkable imprint on Watani and contributed in connecting the paper with thousands of its readers throughout Egypt, will also make a comeback. This section was temporarily removed from the print version of Watani two years ago but had remained active on the website, owing to a management decision to reduce the number of the pages in the paper in the wake of the huge increase in cost of printing. The time has now come for the Governorates Page to reoccupy its place on the paper, replacing other sections which have concluded their roles. On the same page, Watani Mail which holds the pulse of Watani readers, will make a comeback.
The Min Daftar Ahwal al-Watan, literally ‘From the Nation’s Records’, Page will also figure in Watani’s new issues. This page had for a long time enriched the paper and offered readers historical information about Coptic Egypt, the Church and its monasteries, and the biographies of Coptic figures and their national role and contribution in all fields of work, creativity, culture and politics.
As I already mentioned, new sections were reinvented to meet the readers’ aspirations. Therefore the paper will present light material to engage the readers, such as Crosswords and Sudoku. Furthermore, the section of Our Partners in Life that used to offer content on wildlife through a weekly image and caption, informing readers of animals, their habitat and nature, will once again feature on our pages.
These are the main features of the new editorial map of Watani in 2019. This of course is in addition to the main sections that cover current events, politics, economy, social issues, culture, and sports, as well as the Watani service sections. And there will always be room to add new sections created by our eager reporters to cater to the needs and aspirations of our dear readers.
Watani International
30 December 2018