Some of the participants
The Director of Communications at the Bank of Ghana (BoG), Bernard Otabil, has appealed to journalists to be more circumspect in reporting on the operations and activities of the Central Bank and other financial issues.
According to him, the BoG is a very sensitive institution and journalists ought to cross check their facts when reporting on issues about the bank.
He said, “For the BoG, it is not only the notes and coins we issue into circulation that makes us who we are. But we also issue trust and integrity and we play a pivotal part in the management of our country.
“So please if you find yourself in institutions where there are lots of spin doctrine actually clouding the substance of a good story, kindly take the BoG out”.
Mr. Otabil made the appeal at a two-day Capacity Building Workshop organized by the BoG for journalists in the Western and Western North Regions.
The workshop focused on Monetary Policy Practice in Ghana and other economic issues.
He said the management of the Bank recognises the important role journalists play in sensitising the public about its policies and programmes, particularly, after the Bank’s Monetary Policy meetings.
He mentioned that communication remains critical to enhancing the Bank’s policies and noted that inaccurate information about the Central Bank can kill invertors’ confidence in the economy.
“Therefore, with the approval of management, the Communications Department of the Bank consistently creates platforms to improve strategic media partnerships”, he added.
He said the Bank is committed to empowering journalists to deliver impactful narratives about the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) and build journalists’ confidence in writing about business and finance.
“The initiative is to further enhance your ability to craft compelling narratives about the policies and objectives of the Bank as far as monetary policy is concerned”, he told the Journalists.
The Western Regional Manager of Bank of Ghana, Kofi Assan described the media as major stakeholders and was hopeful that the workshop would aid the journalists to report accurately on economic issues.
President of the Western Region Journalists’ Association, Desmond Cudjoe, commended the Bank of Ghana for the initiative.
He was hopeful that the training would go a long way in helping journalists understand financial policies and communicate them more effectively to the public.
From Emmanuel Opoku, Takoradi