CIPE and the International Business School (IBS)of Almaty, Kazakhstan teamed up recently to provide economic training to a group of Kazakh business journalists.More than 75 media professionals from ten regions participated in the two training seminars, representing newspapers, television, and radio stations from around the country. The seminars drew significant interest from the media: 14 articles have been published in local and national newspapers thus far, and six television/ radio stations broadcast the seminars.
High demand led the IBS to divide the training program into three smaller regional seminars in Almaty, Aktubinsk, and Pavlodar. Because of the widely differing perceptions in Kazakhstan of the role of business and government, IBS and CIPE ensured that journalists from outlying regions were an integral part of the program.
Discussion varied greatly among the regions, but each regional seminar focused on several core topics: a review of the Kazakh economy, the development of small and medium-sized business, the role of foreign investment, pension reform, the methodology of economic and business coverage in mass media, and the need to develop a statistical service.
One of the most dynamic results coming out of the program has been the formation of a network of journalists that attended the Aktubinsk seminar. Moreover, through their direct contact with participants and organizers, local government authorities have also begun to acknowledge the importance of business journalism.
Kamal Smailov, President of the Union of Journalists of Kazakhstan,praised the fact that there is tremendous interest among business journalists to improve their professionalism and that the IBS/CIPE training provided practical advice to accomplish that goal.