The Bloomberg Media Initiative Africa (BMIA) Financial Journalism Training Program to advance business and financial reporting was launched today in Ghana with over 50 delegates scheduled to participate for over six months.

The 53 delegates will take part in the first intake of the training that will be offered in partnership with the University of Ghana Business School and the Ghana Institute of Journalism.

Honourable Minister Kojo Oppong Nkrumah, Minister of Information, Ghana said: “We are pleased that BMIA has launched its financial journalism training program in Ghana. The Ghanaian economy is becoming increasingly complex, so it is crucial that the Ghanaian press develops accordingly. I am confident that this program will support the continuous progression of the Ghanaian media by exposing them to leading financial journalism experts.”

During the next six months, the delegates will spend 19 days in sessions led by prominent faculty at the two local educational institutions and will cover topics to strengthen their skills in data analysis, capital markets, accounting, public policy, economics and journalism. They will also have a free subscription to the global data, news and information provided on the Bloomberg Terminal. The Training Program was previously offered in Kenya, Nigeria and South Africa, graduating more than 500 delegates.

The Training Program is a core component of the BMIA, which aims to contribute to the advancement of business and financial reporting in Africa, recognizing the important role the media plays in promoting transparency, accountability and good governance. The BMIA, is a project of Bloomberg Philanthropies. The Training Program in Ghana will also receive support from the Stavros Niarchos Foundation.

“We are very excited to see the start of this new phase of the Bloomberg Media Initiative Africa Financial Journalism Training program. The Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF) is proud to partner with Bloomberg in helping equip a global talent pool of journalists with the sort of specialist expertise that can drive them towards attaining a high level of professional excellence. This is the basis of a robust, ethical, independent press, which now seems to be more critical than ever,” said Andreas Dracopoulos, co-President of the Stavros Niarchos Foundation.

Speaking at the program launch, Erana Stennett, Director, BMIA said: “We’ve seen the impact the BMIA Financial Journalism Training Program has had in other markets, so we are very excited to extend the program to Ghana. We hope the training helps participants navigate the evolving Ghanaian and African economic and business landscape, ultimately furthering the development, quality, accuracy and impact of the financial journalism field in Africa.”

Remarks were also offered by Honorable Minister Ursula Owusu- Ekuful, Minister for Communication, Ghana, Honorable Minister Matthew Opoku-Prempeh, Minister for Education, Ghana, Ms. Elsie Addo Awadzi, Second Deputy Governor, Bank of Ghana, Professor Joshua Abor, Dean, University of Ghana Business School, Dr. Modestus Fosu, Ag Rector, Ghana Institute of Journalism, Mr. Tim Quashigah, Dean, Ghana Institute of Journalism and Ms. Christine Mwangi, Secretariat Director, Strathmore Business School.

Topics will include Economics, Financial Markets and Data Analysis. Delegates also receive a free subscription to the Bloomberg Terminal giving them access to real-time financial information, data, and news. Since its launch, BMIA has reached more than 1,000 stakeholders in Africa, with delegates from 13 countries graduating from the BMIA Financial Journalism Training Program.

BMIA has also sponsored four annual conferences for media owners and senior leaders in business, government and civil society; a Fellowship for editors and senior journalists and a fund to promote community media and citizen journalism. The Ford Foundation has also provided support for some of these activities.