Sharjah: Communication has to serve the people and encourage dialogue, His Highness Shaikh Dr Sultan Bin Mohammad Al Qasimi, Supreme Council Member and Ruler of Sharjah, said while opening the 9th International Government Communication Forum (IGCF) on Wednesday.
“Communication must be directed towards informing the people, encouraging dialogue, bringing positive changes in fields of health, education and security, and making the delivery of public services more transparent and effective through the use of right media channels,” Shaikh Sultan said in his speech.
A total of 64 global thinkers and communications experts from 16 countries are attending the two-day forum aimed at promoting effective communication based on four pillars of ‘Embedding a culture of engagement in government; Technology as a community enabler; Communication through culture; and Wholistic wellbeing.
The Sharjah Ruler emphasised successful public communication involves various sectors and not just the government. “People in charge of internal and external communications in companies, journalists, PR professionals, website designers, media figures should carry out the responsibilities,” he underlined.
“Communication’s core function is that of an enabler. Good communication accompanies people to be able to enjoy various public services and enhance their lives. Sharjah has achieved this,” Shaikh Sultan added.
Sultan Bin Ahmed Al Qasimi, Chairman of Sharjah Media Council (SMC), said: “Through our years of research here in Sharjah, we have sufficiently established that communication is a key enabler of trust between governments and the governed, and a strategic driver of sustainable development.”
“We are committed to creating more opportunities for interactions between the government and our people, and strengthen the culture of ‘holistic communication,” he added.
In a recorded message played at the forum, Prince El Hassan bin Talal, President of Arab Thought Forum (ATF), emphasised the future of post-communication depends on the ability to think, act and communicate in a different way, as well as to have a global perspective and a universal culture.
“We can only incorporate a culture of going beyond communication by changing our methodology of classification to a wholistic methodology, that is, be as close possible to the people,” he added.
Revolution of the mind
Dr. Michio Kaku, theoretical physicist and futurist, talked the fifth wave of social revolution which is about harnessing the full potential of the human mind.
For Kaku, the brain is like a computer hardwared and the brain is the software. By unlocking the mysteries of the brain, which he says is the most powerful thing in the universe, people will be able to manipulate one’s consciousness with the same function we push electrons around digital devices.
“They’ll be in your contact lens, allowing you to blink and go online. People will be able to access to the internet with a blink of an eye. Emotions can also be stored like data files and people can convey emotions and memories to one another via “brain net,” he concluded.
