Online workshop was held on 7 December 2021 for improving cooperation between the State Audit Office and journalists, as a precondition for ethical reporting on topics related to public funding.
The welcome speech was given by the Chief of Communications and Media Relations of OSCE Mission to Skopje Ilona Kazarjan, Auditor General Maksim Acevski, and President of the Association of Journalists Mladen Chadikovski.
Workshop lecturers were Tatjana Dimitrovska, Assistant to the Auditor General and Goran Temenugov, Public Relations Expert. The workshop was attended by journalists who follow and actively work in the field of economics, as well as state/certified auditors from the State Audit Office.
The purpose of the workshop was to promote and strengthen cooperation between auditors and journalists, which is of particular importance for professional and objective reporting to the public on topics related to public funding. Through practical examples and interactive exercises, auditors had the opportunity to provide guidance for the journalists on the proper use of terminology and interpretation of audit reports.
Journalists from several media highlighted some challenges and difficulties they face in "reading and understanding" audit reports and made suggestions on how to create even more successful communication with the State Audit Office for informing about identified shortcomings in audit reports.
The event was organized by the Association of Journalists, supported by OSCE Mission to Skopje, within the activities arising from the signed Memorandum of Cooperation between the State Audit Office and the Association of Journalists of Macedonia.