Let us rewind a few years to the beginning of the so-called Arab Spring in Tunisia, and later in Egypt. The core demand of the public shouting slogans was for development. It is pointless now to ask in hindsight why the government communication apparatuses in these countries did not address the element and substance of these slogans before they snowballed into a cause of disagreement between the people and the authorities.
However, we can ask a more pertinent question, the answer to which I think will decisively determine the destiny of the Arab region. It's this: can government communication today with its conceptual, practical and experiential legacy effectively influence the course of events and turn the tide towards a better tomorrow?
Let us examine this proposition in light of the lessons gleaned from recent developments. I am not going to analyse events that grabbed global headlines – quite the contrary. Many world events do not catch our sustained attention or get etched in our memories despite their long-term relevance. They vanish from the mind and from the media in no time. This is because they are not given the chance to fester into daunting crises, and are promptly and judiciously settled.
Given this premise, these are the very events that justifiably require closer study as they offer us valuable lessons on how to limit or prevent socio-economic maladies. The proper understanding of events that vanish immediately from the media glare are far more significant than those that violently infiltrate our consciousness. The shocking spectacles that grab headlines around the world happen because the issues at their core are left to fester and grow for a long period of time in front of our very eyes.
To illustrate my point, let me relate this anecdote from France. This year, many cities in that country witnessed agitations by farmers and cattle breeders, incensed by the drop in prices of agricultural and cattle products. The farmers and breeders not only found it difficult to compete in the market with companies that sold processed food products but also faced challenges with repaying their bank loans. This pitted them squarely against the government. The farmers took to blocking the major highways with tractors and demonstrating in front of government offices in most cities.
In view of the complex socio-economic situation in European countries, an escalation of the farmers’ strike had the potential to throw France into disarray. But due to effective communication strategies, the government succeeded in salvaging a potentially disastrous situation and resolving the core issue to the satisfaction of all parties.
This experience can teach the Arab world a few valuable lessons in government communication, which assume particular significance against the backdrop of events rocking our region.
For starters, development – specifically the one that is relevant to the main productive sectors of the economy – should figure prominently in the government’s communication strategy priorities. Development is not an ephemeral subject that is occasionally relevant. Rather, it is one of the most crucial determinants of sociopolitical stability everywhere, regardless of cultural and political differences.
What are the factors that we must consider for creating a culture of development that would help cement ties between individuals and their country? Primarily, the individual must feel a strong sense of stability and belonging to their community. Fundamental rights for education, health and work should be fully protected, irrespective of income. Government communication can, and must, play a leading role in disseminating messages that integrate a culture of development.
Secondly, the reasons for crises are cumulative, in the sense that they take shape insidiously over time – starting small at the roots and then gradually reaching cataclysmic proportions. Government communication must monitor all socio-economic developments carefully and deal with all pertinent issues thrown up well in time. The factors that have the potential to become a crisis must be nipped in the bud. Time is a crucial factor and the earlier you deal with an issue, the better.
Thirdly, government communication cannot function in isolation. Success in its mission to communicate effectively underscores coordination between the various government communication units and government agencies monitoring social changes. Often, government communication units find it difficult to deal with issues of a highly specialised nature, such as the current developments in the Gulf Cooperation Council countries, resulting from the drop in oil prices. This is where the need for coordination, with dedicated authorities and institutions, assumes greater importance.
It may appear that observing and comprehending the impact of globalisation on national identity and indigenous values is a gargantuan task. But coordination with relevant institutions and experts in social affairs will offer the necessary clarity to tackle the issues at hand. The long and short of it is that government communication units must coordinate with an entire spectrum of institutions and authorities in order to successfully carry out their task.
Fourthly, the complete absence of hostility in the manner in which the French government tackled the farmers’ agitation was striking. It looked at the agitation as a national and developmental issue, rather than as a mere law and order problem.
The government was cognisant of the fact that the well-being of the farmers and animal breeders was important to the country as they represented the most productive and essential sectors in France. In light of our experiences in the Arab world, we need to seriously reflect on the lessons detailed above. The point about the lack of hostility in dealing with issues of public concern is probably the most relevant to the Arab context.
Government communication is still in its nascent stages in the Arab world and we need to structure it in a way that allows it to play its legitimate role in society. It has to plug the gap between the reality of the Arab citizen and his or her aspirations and dreams. It is high time we embraced a development discourse based on direct communication between the citizen and the government in an atmosphere of mutual trust and good will.
Sheikh Sultan bin Ahmed Al Qasimi is chairman of the Sharjah Media Centre
