Syrian-born journo elected president of Foreign Correspondents’ Club of South Asia

New Delhi, India — The Foreign Correspondents’ Club of South Asia (FCC) has chosen a new leadership slate after concluding one of its most closely watched internal elections in recent years. Balloting took place at the club’s New Delhi headquarters on Saturday, 24 May.

At the end of the count, Syrian-born geopolitical analyst and foreign correspondent Dr. S. H. Waiel Awwad, based in India, emerged as president of the Foreign Correspondents Club (FCC) of South Asia for the 2025-27 term. A familiar face on television panels and strategic-affairs forums, Dr. Awwad brings more than four decades of reporting and commentary on South Asian and Middle Eastern affairs to the post.

Dr Awwad succeeds Venkat Narayan, another highly respected foreign correspondent. The elections followed the Annual General Body Meeting, held within the FCC premises.

He has pledged to “deepen the club’s tradition of fearless, balanced journalism in an era of multiplying conflicts and information disorders.”

Long-time editor and academic Prakash Nanda was re-elected secretary. Over a 35-year career, he has helmed magazines, contributed to think tank journals, and authored books on defence and foreign policy—credentials that, members said, position him to steer the club’s editorial events calendar with authority.

Veteran television correspondent P. M. Narayanan, whose 25-year body of work for German broadcasters has ranged from conflict zones to business summits, was also re-elected as treasurer, promising “prudent but growth-oriented” management of the club’s finances.

The nine-member Governing Council that will work alongside the principal office-bearers includes: Amitabh Srivastava of AIB; Anoop Saxena of German Radio; C. K. Nayak of Nepal’s Jan Astha Abroad; Devina Gupta of BBC; Eshani Mathur of Bloomberg; Krishnan P. Nayar of the Emirates News Agency; Mayank Bhardwaj of Reuters; Ruslan Imaev of Russia Today; and Siddharth Srivastava of Channel News Asia, Singapore.

Council members will oversee programme committees ranging from professional training to press-freedom advocacy.

Independent election officer Amit Sharma supervised the contest, combining electronic and paper ballots to ensure accuracy and auditability. “Every voice was heard and every vote respected,” he told reporters after handing over the certified results, noting a voter turnout of nearly 70 percent, well above the club’s historic average.

Founded in 1958, the FCC of South Asia is one of the region’s oldest press clubs, drawing correspondents from more than 30 countries. With the new leadership, attention now turns to a packed agenda that includes a forum on media safety in conflict zones and a centenary retrospective on India’s foreign-policy reportage.

Dr. Awwad said his immediate priorities are modernising the club’s digital infrastructure, expanding training scholarships for young journalists from the global South, and strengthening dialogue with government agencies “without surrendering the club’s hard-won independence.” His team assumes office on 1 June.