Journalists equipped with investment communication skills

Investments in collaboration with CDA Consult has organised a training programme for media practitioner in finance and investment communication aimed at equipping journalist with in-depth knowledge for effective reportage.

Dr Raziel Obeng-Okon, Chief Executive Officer, CIDAN Investment, speaking at the event said the training seeks to build solid foundation in the theory and practice of financial reporting within the public sector.

Topic treated included public sector accounting, fund management, public sector auditing and budgeting.

He said the programme, first in a series was intended to provide analytical skills needed for operation as a journalist in the forefront of the financial world.

He said in the ever-changing field of finance and investment, understanding issues at the national and global level was critical to journalists.

"The training programme developed alongside international organisations, will ensure that Ghanaian journalists deepen their knowledge in the area of finance, if they have to report within today's business operations," he added.

The Chief Executive Officer said the media needed to position itself to understand issues, when reporting on finance and investment.

Dr Obeng-Okon said it was expected that the media go beyond to interpret the figures to the understanding of their readers.

On timely release of funds for developmental projects, he said that has been a challenge and it creates traffic for execution of programmes.

He urged journalists to endeavor to understand the figures to be in a better position to ask probing questions.

He said the collaboration with CDA Consult, which consists of media and Monitoring and Evaluation consultants, seeks to fill the gap identified in communicating development and advocacy results as well as effective monitoring and evaluation of projects.

He said CDA Consult’s mission is to build a social process based on dialogue using a broad range of tools and methods to bring change at different levels including building trust, sharing knowledge and skills, debating and learning for sustained and meaningful change.

Mr Masahudu Ankiilu Kunateh, a Senior Journalist at Chronicle told the Ghana News Agency that the training would go a long way to help journalists report adequately on finance.

He expressed the hope that more corporate institutions would join to train journalist to specialize in other areas of the economy for national development.