How to make news out of foreign aid

The workshop will provide journalists with conceptual tools needed for understanding and reporting on the impact of foreign aid on development in different themes ranging from economic growth at the macro level to the consequences of specific interventions, for instance in the sectors of health and education. This is a complex subject where critical reporting needs to be illuminated by some basic scientific knowledge. Participants will be able to draw upon the latest findings in development economics regarding data and methods for measuring impact, and to use the implications in their own journalistic work.

Participants will first be given an introduction to the central findings in the research project ReCom – Research and Communication on Foreign Aid by UNU-WIDER director Finn Tarp. This will also provide an opportunity for open discussion about the many misconceptions and myths regarding foreign aid.

Thereafter the workshop will deal with specific findings from an African country by a local researcher involved in the ReCom project.