(MENAFN- Khaleej Times)
In an age of terrorism and regional conflicts, the Gulf states "are gardens amid fires", the GCC Secretary-General said on Sunday.
Speaking during the opening of UAE's first Public Diplomacy and Government Communication Forum, Abdullatif Al Zayani, Secretary-General of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), said with wise leadership and persistence of citizens, the gulf states have succeeded in building sustainable and secure environment that continues to develop for GCC and other neighbouring countries.
"The gulf states are the source of stability to the region and the world. It plays a role in making the world a better place for everyone," he told a crowd of delegates and officials among which Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai, was present.
Major part of the success, he said, is looking into challenges as opportunities of having more strength and achievements. He mentioned Yemen as an example of how Gulf diplomacy and its initiatives of providing political solutions to Yemen became accredited in the UN.
Al Zayani noted that terrorism is another challenge that could be looked at as an opportunity to build bridges with neighbouring countries and unite against the ongoing threat.
"Terrorism hijacked our religion and we need to work hard to retrieve back our religion and protect our values that we never deviated from," said Al Zayani.
He noted that the question goes beyond combating terrorism. Besides the GCC's efforts in cooperation with the international federation to combat terrorism, governments should question whether they are ready for post-victory era.
"[Daesh] for example went through defeat. But the question is, will we have a secure environment to make sure no new [terrorist] organisations are born? Are we ready for the first day of peace in Yemen and Syria? Are we ready to support societies so they have hope in achieving better?
"This is the responsibility of the international community; to face terrorism in thoroughly and make sure we are ready for the day we defeat extremism," he stated.
Al Zayani noted that GCC's stability goes back to its communication with the youth and reaching to a phase of creating jobs, instead of seeking ones, through innovation and entrepreneurship.
"I see the efforts of foreign ministers who are responsible for Gulf diplomacy... They work on building trust through values of honesty, integrity, mutual respect, the feeling of security, stability and continuity regardless of challenges."
He concluded: "We believe in peace, tolerance and supporting those who need it. We believe in not interfering with internal affairs and we expect everyone not to interfere in our internal affairs."
The one-day forum aims to explore global trends and challenges facing governments today.
It is expected to support government organisations in enhancing their communication strategies through a discussion of global best practices and success stories from both the region and across the world.
Address fire an example of effective communication: Mona Al Marri
Starting the opening session, Mona Al Marri, Director-General of the Dubai Media Office, said importance of government communication was best manifested during the Address Downtown Hotel fire that broke out during the New Year's Eve 2016.
"While the fire was followed by millions on social media, the western media described it as terrorism or invasion. When the dominating opinion suggested we end the celebration, our leadership insisted to continue," said Al Marri.
She added that with an efficient communication team that worked with speed, accuracy and transparency closely with a keen leadership, the world's outlook turned to talk about UAE's efficient crisis management.
Meanwhile, Josh Earnest, former White House Press Secretary, said effective government communication will foster the UAE-US relations and strengthen the UAE's economy. "Ideas and values that are shared by the US and the UAE and our commitment to pursue them both will not be just for the future of our countries but for the future of the relationship between both countries."
He highlighted that as the UAE is looking forward to achieve its 2021 vision, effective communication from the government will send a message to business leaders that Dubai is the place to do business. He gave an example of when former US President Barack Obama made a clear interest to build relationships with entrepreneurs during his Cairo 2009 speech.
"This focus on global entrepreneurship allowed the US to yield programmes to foster relations with 17,000 entrepreneurs around the world," Earnest said.
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