Sharjah: The importance of spreading the culture of communication between government officials, the public and the media was highlighted once again at a ceremony announcing the final recommendations of the fourth International Government Communication Forum (IGCF 2015).

Held by Shaikh Sultan Bin Ahmad Al Qasimi, Chairman of Sharjah Media Centre (SMD), the ceremony underlined the importance of enhancing internal communication between government departments and ensuring the participation of citizens in public services.

Some of the recommendations are inspired by the keynote address delivered by His Highness Dr Shaikh Sultan Bin Mohammad Al Qasimi, Member of the Supreme Council and Ruler of Sharjah, at the opening session of the forum which took place in February.

Based on the discussions that took place at the forum, the recommendations are divided into six major categories; recommendations for Governments and Leaders, recommendations for Government Institutions, recommendations for Government Communication Departments, recommendations for Digital Communication, recommendations for Crisis Communication, and recommendations for Official Spokespersons.

Shaikh Sultan Bin Ahmad Al Qasimi explained that the speeches, round tables and interventions carried out at the forum by key global leaders, intellectuals and government communication experts offered a clear overview of the next steps that need to be taken towards developing government communication practices in the country and the wider region.

These include encouraging public communication through programmes that facilitate discussions and debates between citizens and officials. They also include promoting inter-department government communication and encouraging citizen participation in public services, as well as improving forms of communication with the media.

The recommendations further call upon government communication officials to be proactive in their actions, be publicly accessible across various communication platforms, particularly social media, and being quick to interact with the public.

These goals can be achieved by creating the right environment for government communication and promoting awareness about its strategic role among all parties in the government.

The IGCF has seen an increase in the number of guests over the past three years, with 4,196 guests in 2015, 2,756 in 2014, and 2,500 in 2013.