FAILURE OF SUB-REGIONAL ECONOMIC REFORM PROGRAMMES HINDERS PROGRESS OF TODAY’S DYNAMIC BUSINESS

Today’s dynamic business, which requires effective communication skills, has been rendered unproductive by what participants of an eight-day course described as “Previous economic reform programmes in the sub-region”. Many programmes have been initiated to help eliminate barriers to financial management, but none of the initiatives has prudently addressed problems related to ineffective communication. Held in Banjul from16 to 24 April by the West African Institute for Finance and Economic Management (WAIFEM), the course brought together officials of the central banks, revenue authorities, customs and excise, and finance and economic affairs ministries of the English-speaking West African countries of The Gambia, Ghana, Liberia, Nigeria and Sierra Leone. WAIFEM is an initiative by the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), established in 1996 with the mandate to strengthen sustainable capacity for debt, financial sector and macro-economic management in these countries. “In spite of the critical need for effective communication in attaining organisational objectives, report writing, which constitutes a critical element in communication, is unfortunately not given the due attention it deserves,” said Fatou Njie, a participant, who read the communiqué prepared by the course participants at the end of the training. “Ineffective communication could be partly blamed for the failure of previous economic reform programmes in the sub-region,” she said, calling on WAIFEM to consider running the course more regularly to build the capacities of actors on communications and report writing. Given the dynamic nature of business, it is essential that individuals and organisations master the communication process to enable them achieve their goals and economic development in the sub-region. "Organisations should understand and value the importance of effective report writing in attaining organisational goals,” Ms Njie said, adding that there should be continuous capacity building in report writing and presentation skills for organisational effectiveness.

Governor Colley Whilst modern business organisations require constant and large amount of internal and external communication, the course has been designed to empower players in the sector with the capacity to use communication as a powerful tool for job effectiveness. The course was among other things aimed at enhancing the competence of participants in writing and presentation of effective economic, financial and other technical reports, whilst also building the confidence of participants to be competent communicators. With the team of people trained during the timeline of the course, WAIFEM’s director of financial department, Ousman Sowe, is optimistic that the problems faced by the sub-region in terms of communication could be curbed. “The limitation in the number of communication experts in our [West African] region will become a history,” he noted. Essa Drammeh, director of banking and financial supervision at the Central Bank of The Gambia, said the neglect of the dictionary forms part of the results of common errors in report writing. He called on the powers that be to ensure regular capacity building in report writing and presentation techniques.