OUAGADOUGOU, December 18, 2017‒How are the projects and programs that we finance perceived by the media? Do they understand our operating procedures and how we work with the Government to implement these projects and programs? And, lastly, do they believe that all these projects (we are currently financing some 20 projects for a total commitment of almost $1.5 billion) have a positive impact on their country’s development?
To find answers to all these questions, the World Bank decided to organize the first “Development Reporters - Burkina Faso” competition. Launched in April 2017, the competition provided journalists working in Burkina Faso with the opportunity to report on 13 projects in the portfolio of the World Bank Group, which also includes the International Development Association and the International Finance Corporation. The rules were simple: reporters were free to choose the project that they wanted to cover and the angle of their story. They also had the opportunity to present what they considered to be a project’s positive impact or failure.
“This is a trickier task than meets the eye,” explained Cheick Kanté, World Bank Country Manager for Burkina Faso. “The media are important partners to us
A total of 21 high-quality journalistic productions offering interesting perspectives were published. The most widely covered themes were water (Urban Water Sector Project PSEU) and infrastructure (Donsin Transport Infrastructure Project PITD) through which the Bank is helping build access roads, followed by education, health, and energy.
The first prize in the written press category was awarded to Oumar Ouédraogo from the Sidwaya daily paper for his report entitled “Village de Kompienbiga: L'électricité