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Economic Journalists Club Presented a Guide-book on How to Cover
Crisis-Related Issues

Yerevan, 24 December 2009 – Today the United Nations House in Armenia
hosted the launch of a guide-book for the journalists on how to cover
the global economic and financial crisis-related issues produced by
the Economic Journalists Club (EJC) NGO. The project was supported by
the Government of Norway and the UN Development Programme (UNDP) in
Armenia.
The participants of the event were addressed by Ms. Alla Bakunts, UNDP
Democratic Governance Portfolio Analyst, Mr. Ashot Markosyan, Deputy
Head of State Property Department under the RoA Government, Mr. Gagik
Makaryan, Executive Director of the Union of Manufacturers and
Businessmen (Employers) of Armenia, Ms. Anna Baghdasaryan, Executive
Director of EJC and Mr. Armen Melikyan, Director of NASDAQ OMX.
Welcoming the participants, Ms. Alla Bakunts said, "In the time of
crisis, it is even more important for the media to be able to transmit
reliable and professional information to public on possible effects of
the crisis, on-going processes and government policies. In such a
situation an effective link and a dialogue between public and
officials become even more critical because it will help identify
solutions and reduce possible social tension."
To respond to country challenges in view of the growing impact of the
economic and financial crisis, UNDP in Armenia, together with other UN
Agencies, international and national stakeholders held a conference on
social impact of the global economic crisis on Armenia to discuss
measures to mitigate the social impact of the crisis. Among other
measures, UNDP in Armenia considered as a priority strengthening the
capacity of the media to monitor government programs and present to
public crisis-related issues, as well as policy level discussions and
solutions.
To address that, UNDP supported the EJC to conduct a series of
trainings for the print, electronic and broadcast media on economic
subjects with participation of government officials and independent
experts, including representatives from the International Monetary
Fund and the World Bank. The programme included media monitoring and
analysis and preparation of a guide-book for the journalists on how to
cover crisis-related issues.
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UNDP is the UN’s global development network, advocating for change and
connecting countries to knowledge, experience and resources to help
people build a better life. We are on the ground in 166 countries,
working with them on their own solutions to global and national
development challenges. As they develop local capacity, they draw on
the people of UNDP and our wide range of partners. UNDP in Armenia was
established in 1993 and supports the Government of Armenia to reach
its own development priorities and the Millennium Development Goals by
2015.