Mogadishu(SONNA)-Officers of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation of the Federal Government of Somalia have been told that use of strategic communication tools is vital if they are to win the hearts and minds of the people they serve.
The Deputy Special Representative of the African Union Commission (DSRCC) for Somalia, Simon Mulongo, said this when he was addressing twenty newly recruited officers during a three-day specialized media and communication strategy development training in Mogadishu from the 23rd to 25th November.
“As a government officers, you need to have a clear strategy supported by action plans to be able to inform, educate and influence the masses on the subject of your choice”, Mulongo said in his remarks during the official opening of the training.
This first-ever training was facilitated by the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) in partnership with the Diaspora Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation.
Through the specialized training of its staff, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation hopes to enhance the country’s image through effective communications, improve its messaging capabilities as well as advance the narrative of resilience, reconstruction and progress that Somalia is undergoing.
Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation Director of Diplomatic Institute Ambassador Yusuf Alasow Mohamud thanked AMISOM and underscored the importance of the training for both the Ministry and the staff trained and requested more similar specialized training to be organized.
“I hope you will practice the knowledge you gained here. We have requested AMISOM for more of such specialized training to be extended to us,” Ambassador Yusuf told the trainees on the closing day of the training.
Senior officials from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs who attended the opening and closing ceremonies of the training include Mohamed Abdi Ali, the Director of Diaspora Relations whose department played a key role in organizing the training, Abdi Dahir Abdirahman, the Director of Africa Department and Abdiweli Hassan Hussein, the Head of Diaspora Relations Sections.
Yassin Ahmed Ali said he had gained a lot during the three days’ training and was raring to go to put into practice what he had learnt.
“My understanding of the media and how media is important in my line of work has improved. I have learnt of the relationship between media and diplomats and also how the two are critical for each other,” he said.
