Tag Archives: Economic Journalism

Kyrgyzstan’s capital city of Bishkek hosted more than 100 Eurasian journalists and economic experts for a two-day conference on the emerging field of economic journalism. The CIPE/NED-funded event entitled “Economic Journalism as a Factor and Indicator for Market Economic Development” took place on October 11-12 and was the first of its kind, with participants from all five Central Asian countries. Organized and moderated by the Bishkek-based Development Policy Institute, the event fostered greater cross-border and cross-sectoral dialogue on economic and business-related issues.

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Informed and educated citizens are an important part of a thriving democracy.  When citizens are well-informed and equipped with facts and independent analysis, they can better engage in the policymaking process at every level to keep the government honest, responsible, and accountable to its constituents.

Kyrgyzstan has a relatively free media compared to other Central Asian countries. However, good information on business and economic issues is scarce in Kyrgyzstan. Typically, available materials are written in professional jargon and not easily understood by average citizens or by journalists. Journalists lack the knowledge of basic market concepts and the benefits of market-oriented economic reforms.

CIPE’s partner, the Kyrgyz Stock Exchange Press Club (KSEPC) engaged and educated journalists from different regions to improve economic and business reporting in Kyrgyzstan. To help journalists better understand crucial market-related issues, KSEPC published a 76-page practical manual (in Russian and Kyrgyz) for economic journalists concentrating on basic information regarding key economic sectors.

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Participants in last year’s economic journalism training program.

From Astana to Tashkent, approximately 80 Central Asian media and business representatives will gather in Bishkek on October 11th for a two-day conference aimed at strengthening reporting on economic and business-related issues. Presenters will include experts from Belarus, Kazakhstan, Georgia, Russia, and Ukraine, who will offer lessons learned and best practices to develop the field of economic journalism and facilitate effective cooperation and information exchange between media and business.

The topics are timely and relevant, given Freedom House’s 2012 Freedom in the World Report which ranks four of the five Central Asian states among the least free countries in the world, with only Kyrgyzstan improving its ranking from last year. Even after more than twenty years of post-Soviet independence, the region still faces major challenges to its transition to a market-based democracy.

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