The General Directorate of Residency and Foreigners Affairs in Dubai, (Gdrfa) has issued more than one million visas featuring the ‘Dubai, Capital of Arab Media 2020’ logo over the last four months. The logo appears at the bottom left-hand corner of the visa page. The initiative seeks to highlight the UAE’s status as a media hub. Maj Gen Mohammed Ahmed Al Marri, director general of Gdrfa-Dubai said the recognition coincides with Dubai hosting the Mena region’s first Expo 2020. "These achievements encourage all government entities to strive harder to contribute to the UAE’s continued progress and achievements across all fields. The Gdrfa-Dubai is keen to showcase both the UAE’s and Dubai’s key accomplishments and highlight the remarkable progress it has made over the last five decades,” he said. “We appreciate the unique initiative taken by Gdrfa-Dubai to feature the logo in visas issued out of Dubai,” Mona Al Marri, director general of the Government of Dubai Media Office said. "Over the last two decades, key Dubai initiatives such as the Arab Media Forum and the Arab Journalism Award have created a platform for the region’s media industry to engage in dialogue and knowledge-sharing.” More than 4,000 media companies are registered in Dubai. It is only half a century since the first newspaper, Al Ittihad – The Union – was published in what two years later would become the UAE. In a relatively short period in the history of the modern-day media, Abu Dhabi – where that paper was printed – and Dubai have become thriving hubs for the industry in the region. Dubai is this year’s Arab Media Capital and will host the Arab Media Forum from March 25 – 26.