IFC Media Program Promotes Good Corporate Citizenship

Paris, France, May 20, 2011—IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, and the Agence France-Presse (AFP) Foundation have launched a Media Practice Group to steer the IFC Global Corporate Governance Forum’s Media Training Program.  The training program raises public awareness of corporate governance through the media, improves journalists’ reporting skills on corporate governance issues, and encourages them to promote corporate governance best practices in emerging markets.

The Media Practice Group aims to share progress of the training program and lessons learned with internal and external stakeholders around the world. It also aims to work with IFC Advisory Services project managers and members of the Corporate Governance Network and Private Sector Advisory Group to help develop the skills of journalists in reporting on corporate governance and enable them to build a cohesive global network. Another objective of the group is to engage partners like IFC Advisory Services and media organizations to work with the Forum to deliver capacity-building workshops, produce a media toolkit, and motivate journalists to get involved through a virtual press club.

Robert Holloway, AFP Foundation Director, said, “We are pleased to partner with IFC in this important venture. Few journalists know much about corporate governance, but it is a factor in some of the biggest news stories of our time, from the financial crisis to the Arab spring.”  

Eugene Spiro, IFC Senior Projects Officer, said, “It is crucial to strengthen the media’s ability to report effectively on corporate governance, not only to increase public awareness about the subject but also to hold companies accountable.”

The Global Corporate Governance Forum is the leading knowledge and capacity-building platform dedicated to corporate governance reform in emerging markets and developing countries. It is a multi-donor trust fund, co-founded in 1999 by the World Bank and OECD.

About IFC
IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, is the largest global development institution focused on the private sector in developing countries. We create opportunity for people to escape poverty and improve their lives. We do so by providing financing to help businesses employ more people and supply essential services, by mobilizing capital from others, and by delivering advisory services to ensure sustainable development. In a time of global economic uncertainty, our new investments climbed to a record $18 billion in fiscal 2010. For more information, visit www.ifc.org.

For more information about IFC Global Corporate Governance Forum, visit www.ifc.org/gcgf.
For more information about AFP Foundation, visit www.fondation.afp.com.