MONROVIA – April 5, 2017: 25 participants at a week-long workshop for media practitioners and staff of the budget office of the National Legislature were Friday, March 24, 2017, awarded certificates following the end of an exercise conducted at the Central Bank of Liberia (CBL) in Monrovia. The workshop, organized by the CBL and facilitated by the West African Institute for Financial and Economic Management (WAIFEM), was intended to provide participants with a practical overview and insight into economic and financial markets and upgrade the knowledge and skills of financial analysts in economic and financial policies with a strong emphasis on economic and financial analysis and performance monitoring.
Presenting the certificates on behalf of the Executive Governor of the CBL, Mr. Milton A. Weeks, the Chief of Staff in the Office of the Governor, Mr. Sylvester K. Thomas, lauded WAIFEM for successfully facilitating the workshop on behalf of the CBL. Mr. Thomas said the workshop was in fulfillment of the Governor’s commitment last year during a meeting with media executives to assist in the provision of training on economic and financial sector reporting. He lauded the participants for attending the workshop, which he said will go a long way in enhancing their knowledge of the sector. “It is our sincere belief that the objective of the workshop has been achieved as expressed by the participants and they are now empowered to provide factual, analytical and acceptable information to the public and the principles of practical overview and insight into the economic and financial landscape of Liberia,” Mr. Thomas said.
Discussions at the workshop focused on basic macroeconomic modeling and interrelationships among macroeconomic sectors; tools of monetary and fiscal policy; coordination of monetary and fiscal policy; fiscal policy management; hands-on analysis and reporting on a budget; and elements of the Medium Term Fiscal Framework (MTFF). The workshop also covered the Medium Term Sector Strategy (MTSS); the Role of Statistics in Economic Management and Interpretation of Financial and Economic Indicators.
Participants, have meanwhile, been urged to take advantage of training opportunities being offered by WAIFEM to help broaden their knowledge. Professor, Douglason Omotor, who spoke on behalf of WAIFEM’s Director General, Prof. Akpan H. Ekpo, said he was hopeful that the participants would maximize the knowledge acquired from the exercise. Since the institution commenced capacity building activities in 1997 he recalled, WAIFEM has organized over 584 capacity building programs that have benefited over 15,866 middle, senior and executive level officials of key economic management agencies responsible for economic policy formulation and implementation in West Africa and beyond.
Facilitators included Prof. Akpan H. Ekpo, Director General of WAIFEM; Prof. Geegbae A. Geegbae, Dean of the College of Business and Public Administration at the University of Liberia; and Prof. Douglason G. Omotor of WAIFEM.
For further details contact:
Cyrus W. Badio
Head of Communications
Central Bank of Liberia
Email: cwb@cbl.org.lr