GCO team concludes UK study visit

The week-long visit included lectures and workshops delivered by prominent speakers from international media organizations.

The speakers focused on five major areas: public relations strategy development, strategic media relations, crisis management, effective internal communication and online public relations.

Moreover, the GCO team visited a number of government institutions including the UK Central Office of Information, which is equivalent to the UAE Government Communication Office, and the General Secretariat of the UK Cabinet as well as the CNN offices in London.

They held meetings with government communication practitioners, exchanged views and experiences and discussed case studies where government entities interacted effectively with the media.

Looking into the latest techniques in strategic government communication and the best practices in media campaigning and online communication, the GCO team participated in a number of workshops, delivered by speakers from international media organizations including Reuters and Newsweek. The experience of the UK Transport Department in dealing with hundreds of media inquiries during the crisis of the London public transport bombings in 2007 was thoroughly discussed.

Commenting on the visit, Her Excellency Najla' Mohammed Al Awar, Secretary General of the Cabinet said:

"The study visit aimed to expose the team at the Government Communication Office to the latest best practices in government communications, which will help enhance their skills and develop their ability to implement the recently launched federal government communication strategy."

"The visit reflects the federal government's keen interest in developing its human resources and equipping the federal employees with all necessary skills and information through training and professional development. It also fulfils the vision of the UAE leadership, which aims at building the human capacity and reaching the highest level of professionalism and efficiency throughout the federal government," she added.