"The importance of experienced and knowledgeable economic correspondents is critical in providing both a picture of the present economic progress as well as potential opportunities and challenges which this fast-paced developing economy is faced with.
Economic reporters often act as the primary transmission mechanism between the policy makers and other stakeholders, such as citizens and development partners," said the Country Director Asian Development Bank (ADB).
ADB Country Director Peter Fedon was inaugurating a two-day media workshop "An Introduction to Budgetary Analysis for Journalists" organised by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the Ministry of Finance here on Monday, which was conducted by former Director Pakistan Institute of Development Economics (PIDE) Dr A R Kemal.
This workshop, he said, is the continuation process of last year's series of joint efforts of ADB and Ministry of Finance for training of journalists in economics to broaden their understanding about the composition and impact of the federal budget.
Peter said, in comparison with other Asian countries, "Pakistan is blessed with a strong and diverse media, and it is growing both in terms of outreach and content".
He pointed that economic issues, especially those related to public resource management, are becoming increasingly important in both the print and the electronic media and a growing number of journalists are reporting on economic and financial issues. It is therefore necessary to upgrade their comprehension for better economical analysis in the fast-moving economic changes, which need greater awareness of the key concepts and terminology, he added.
He was of the view that the economy continues to grow and evolve at a faster pace, the type of analysis required to provide the public with information they need, becomes a more complex process. Hence it is of utmost importance that this economic reporting is both accurate and insightful, he maintained.
The workshop, he added, will focus on providing journalists with a guide to accurately analyse and interpret complex budget documents. This will in turn help them in assessing the macroeconomic effects of the changes in revenues and expenditure on the economy. Such analysis will enrich and broaden the debate on maximising the efficiency of available resources. He was of the opinion that the inter-relationships of various policies and economic variables are intricate and the public understanding of the budgetary issues will be supported by a meaningful and objective analysis by the media.
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