Transparency is the goal

As Germany's leading provider of international media development, DW Akademie supports the development of free and transparent media systems. Our objective is to enable all members of society to have access to information, and this way to strengthen freedom of expression.

One of our focuses at Media Training is on international communication consulting where we work to promote openness and transparency at the governmental and administrative level in countries undergoing democratic transitions. We also aim to contribute to ensuring that all segments of society, including non-governmental organizations (NGOs), associations and other civil groups, can be heard in public discourse.

We also believe that for journalists to pursue their role as monitors of democracy and to offer the public comprehensive information, they need to speak with social actors and those in public office who are able, and willing, to provide information in a way that is transparent and easy to understand.

Credible first and foremost

The Federal Press Conference as a viable model: Ukrainian and Russian election monitors visit Berlin

This includes clear communication in times of crisis, rather than maintaining a low profile or obscuring the facts. Our international communication consulting division works in countries moving towards democracy and where DW Akademie is active in media development. We support a range of local institutions, ministries and interest groups with long-term projects on behalf of Germany's Federal Foreign Office (AA) and the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ).

We began working with the press offices of different ministries in Tunisia just after the "Arab Spring" in 2012. This has enabled DW Akademie to build trust at a very early stage of the country's transition to democracy. The goal is to support Tunisia's reform process by anchoring a new understanding of public relations. We have since initiated additional projects in countries such as Cambodia, Bhutan and Ukraine.

Journalists as partners, not opponents

Organizing a press conference: Part of a training seminar at a Tunisian ministry

International communication consulting covers a range of key aspects, such as how to write an easy-to-understand press release, create an informative ministry website, organize press conferences, and take journalists' needs seriously. We work with local press officers to develop strategies for transparent public relations. Our consultants run through concrete crisis scenarios and help structure press offices so that staff can respond quickly and appropriately to critical situations.

We also offer media training for press office staff at ministries and non-governmental organizations (NGOs), helping them prepare to speak in front of the camera and to deliver press statements. We have been training and advising Ukrainian NGOs and election observers from Ukraine and Russia since 2014.

And we are also active in established democracies in terms of sustaining an environment where people are interested in forming their own opinions. Here we coach non-governmental organizations, associations and other civil society groups in transporting their message in a clear way, in an increasingly heterogeneous and fast-moving media environment.