ADDIS ABABA — Senior academicians call on stakes to shape and reframe Ethiopia’s Public Diplomacy (PD) mix in order to make its influence far reaching beyond its borders.
In an exclusive interview with The Ethiopian Herald, Bahir Dar University School of Law Assistant Professor Misganaw Gashaw noted that Ethiopia’s public diplomacy had accomplished
many wonderful things, but many still remain to be done. And while the mix is also commendable, there are list of individuals who should have been part of it.
It gives fundamental advantage to incorporate senior experts in the corps because they can help to identify, gather and organize information on prominent media outlets, think tanks, lobby groups, influential institutions and peoples from
round the world.
PDs of other countries handle issues in clear arrangements, higher structure and institution, which are resourced through a variety of instruments and methods ranging from personal contact and media interviews to the internet and educational exchanges to create informed audience on the matters.
As Ethiopia is found at the epicenter of African and Middle Eastern geopolitics, the country should put in place a robust PD corps to win the hearts and minds of the pertinent stakes in these parts of the world.
Enabling the general public in these countries to get information about political and socio-economic as well as historical and cultural situations of Ethiopia should be done in more organized fashion than ever before, Misganaw opines.
“This should go all the way to promoting the history and values Ethiopia shares with its African brothers and with Middle Eastern nations in many ways.”
He further noted that, though PD is widely used for building image, attracting foreign direct investment, winning the hearts and minds of foreign citizens, Ethiopia is not gaining the advantages to the scale of the demand on the ground.
To this end, he says that it is high time for Ethiopia to reinforce the PD corps to make sure all skilled professionals are incorporated.
“Think-tank groups should be established by experts drawn from various disciplines like history, politics, communication studies, and public relations, researchers, academics, and consultants.”
According to Mensur Dessie, Director of Multilateral Environment Agreements Negotiation at Environment, Forest and Climate Change Commission diplomacy today is evolving at a much faster rate than in the second half of the 20th century.
While traditional diplomatic practice is associated with actors involved in the largely invisible processes of international relations, public diplomacy is about diplomatic engagement with people. Thus, he continues, Ethiopia’s public diplomacy should focus in opening up the traditionally closed domain of accredited practitioners and make diplomats more visible than they have ever been.
Since politics was and will not be the solitary source of solution, putting public diplomacy efforts is important in strengthening and creating informed communities.
Ethiopia with its great history, and as a cradle of mankind, is sited many times in the holy books, which should be promoted well.
“Because we did not sell our historical resources properly, today some countries and interest groups are trying to undermine Ethiopia’s legitimate right and efforts to develop its own resources by painting inaccurate picture of the country on the news.” This could have been easily defended by well-established PD corps, he adds.
For instance, member countries of the Arab League attach little importance to Ethiopia’s position towards GERD which limits any effort to understand Ethiopia’s perspective in this regard.
As to him, conventional diplomatic efforts are already underway to reverse this reality. “While conventional diplomatic efforts are underway, we are not witnessing public diplomacy efforts at the excepted and needed level. It should have been commenced earlier to change and shape the unjust stands of these Arab League members across the board.”
However, he adds, some Ethiopians, while being not members of the public diplomacy mix, are trying to avert the situation by putting the realities on the ground out there, and by bringing Ethiopia’s side to the rest of the world.
Well-organized PD institutions that are engaged in promoting Ethiopia’s image to the rest of the world should let Ethiopians and non-Ethiopians engage actively in events like cultural exchanges, forums, exhibitions and different conferences that can serve as a platform to advance the positive image.
He concluded, to sell country’s values, and learn from others public diplomacy structure mix should be reframed in versatile fashion to meet the desired demand on the ground.
The Ethiopian Herald April 29/2020BY MENGISTEAB TESHOME
