Hello all, my name is Tumelo and studying at Limkokwing University, Malaysia. I did my internship for 10 weeks at Ministry of Finance and Development Planning (MFDP), Botswana. And believe me in those 10 weeks I learnt a lot than I could have ever imagined of especially on the public sector. And during my stay at the Ministry of Finance, I learnt that the Public Relations department is new in government, for instance, in MFDP, the office was opened in 2006. So I took the initiative to ask why they decided to have Public Relations in government and I thought I should share with you guys and see the role of Public Relations in the public sector.
Public Relations is a management function which deals with creation of mutual understanding between an organization and its publics. It is important for the organization to know the capability of its audiences or publics. The publics as the people who consume the products also have expectation about the organization of which some may not be favorable to the life of an organization concerned. The organization should pre-empt such a situation in whatever possible way. For example, whatever policies the organization come up with, they have to be interpreted and explained to the public’s in a more form that would allow easy consumption and acceptance.
The role of a public relations department can be seen as a reputation protector. However, PR in government should be understood more within the context of government communications, thus ensuring that government at all times communicates appropriate information to the public in a timely, authoritative, coherent, coordinated and proactive manner, while also promptly responding to the public concerns, queries and criticism.
Public Relations Officers are meant to enhance communication between government and the public much as to enhance communication between the public and government. They do so by:
- Promoting effective and interactive communications between government and the public
- Promoting a positive communication environment; and
- Enhancing the quality of government information and communication.
Having worked in public sector I found there is a need for public relations especially for internal communication which I will touch more on it on my next blog.
What do you guys think?
2 comments:
I completely agree!
You've done a good job of identifying problem areas/eareas to expland PR potential.
Looking forward to your next post!
I agree with your stance on communications in government. The government has to ensure they communicate positive and appropriate information to save their image and reputation from being crumbled. Government's act as a voice and regulatory body for the public and are always in the public eye, hence it is crucial to promote positive information to the media and in the local community.
Jacqueline
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