ISLAMABAD (APP) - Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting Dr Firdous Ashiq Awan has said that media can effectively project soft image of Pakistan across the world besides strengthening democracy in the country. Speaking at a reception hosted in her honour by workers of Associated Press of Pakistan (APP) here, she said Pakistan was facing a challenging task to present real picture of its image, culture and identity at international level. It is the responsibility of national media to counter anti-Pakistan propaganda by presenting true image of the country, she added. In connection with charter of demands presented by President of APP Union, Bilal Thaheem, she assured the contract and daily wage employees of APP would be regularised in line with the regularisation policy of the government. The Minister said that the government has already regularised contract employees in many organisations including Pakistan Television Corporation. The Minister also assured that the Ministry would pursue a case of Rs 220 million grant for APP with the Ministry of Finance for its earlier approval. Moreover, she said after assuming the charge of the Ministry, she has been constantly trying to solve problems of APP and in this connection several meetings have been held between the APP management and the officials concerned of the ministry. She assured that all genuine demands of APP Employees Union would be addressed gradually. Firdous Ashiq said the governments top priority was to solve workers problems and give them job security, despite the fact the government is facing financial constraints. Appreciating the performance of the news agency, she said APP is being considered a credible news agency which is successfully protecting national interests at international level. She said that the ministry is going to organise capacity building training programmes for APP journalists with the collaboration of international media organisations. The Minister said that the ministry is also working on a plan to up-link APP with South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) countries for swift exchange of information. She directed APP management to prepare PC-1 of Housing Scheme for its employees. She announced reinstating four sacked employees of the IT Department, and said it is the basic aim of PPP to provide 'Roti, Kapra and Makan to the masses.