The International Press Centre (IPC) is an autonomous external service of the General Directorate for External Communications. This in turn is part of the federal government service (FOD) of the Office of the First Minister [1] (fr) and is therefore under the authority of the First Minister.
The International Press Centre has been housed in the building of the presscenter.org.
The International Press Centre came into being after the federal government’s Copernicus Project with the aim of making the government more proactive and to improve its interface with citizens.
Every day large numbers of journalists are at work in Brussels. This has led to the requirement for a meeting-point and a fully-equipped press centre where European news could be shared with the media.
As a result, on 20 July the Belgian government decided to set up an international press centre in a part of the presscenter.org (Building C). It is, of course, easier to report the news in pleasant surroundings suited to the job. That is why the magnificent historical building was combined with high-tech equipment.
Local and foreign press staff can find information about the activities of the federal government and municipalities. The government and other non-governmental institutions, organisations and companies can also use the venue to present their projects to the media.
An international press centre is only worthy of its name if the government and the press can play an equal role there. In addition to part of the External Communications service of the First Minister’s Office, various press organisations are also housed in the presscenter.org. This gives them the opportunity to organise all kinds of debates, seminars and conferences.