Future of Government Communication Forum seeks to build stronger bridges between government and society

As part of the World Government Summit’s objective of building stronger bridges between government and society, the ‘Future of Government Communication Forum’, to be held during the event, is set to bring together prominent speakers from the UAE and across the world to discuss the role of communication in achieving the government’s development objectives and ensuring the positive impact of its messages on its audiences.

Mona Al Marri, Director General of the Government of Dubai Media Office said: "The Future of Government Communication Forum is a unique event within the World Government Summit that offers a platform for sharing ideas and knowledge on new strategies that governments need to adopt to communicate effectively with their audiences in a rapidly changing technological environment. Communications will play a vital role in shaping the future of governments and their efforts to maximise opportunities, deal with key challenges and accelerate development.

The Forum will take a close look at the radical disruptions taking place in the communication landscape and the new challenges and opportunities they present to the practice of government communications. The insights generated at the Forum will enrich the discussions on the future agenda for governments at the World Government Summit."

The Forum will feature four sessions including three panel discussions on ‘Future of Government Communications’; ‘Communications Technology’; and ‘Crisis Communication’; and a closed-door discussion for media leaders on ‘The Future of Media’.

The session on ‘Future of Government Communications’ will see a discussion between ministers of information and media from the Arab world on the role of government communications and state-run media in supporting the region’s development journey. The session will take a deep look at how government communication in the region can keep pace with rapid global changes, especially in the field of regulation.

The panel discussion will also assess how governments in the region are using new media platforms to communicate with their local and international audiences, and examine how governments can help develop a new generation of highly skilled media professionals.

The session on ‘Communications Technology’ will explore the ways in which emerging technologies will disrupt government communications.

The panel discussion will address the future of technology in areas like news production, media regulation, cyber security and data privacy. The session will take a closer look at how artificial intelligence will disrupt media and communications in the future including how rapid changes in technology will alter the production of news. The panel discussion will shed light on how regulation needs to evolve to keep pace with advancements in AI and other emerging technologies and the changing data privacy landscape. The increasing role of cyber security in a nation’s defence agenda and its impact on data privacy will be another key focus of the session.

The session on ‘Crisis Communications’ explores the emerging new model for governments to communicate with its audiences and stakeholders in a crisis. Topics that the session will address include how new technologies can be harnessed to ensure proactive and swift crisis response and the lessons that can be drawn from some of the world’s major recent reconciliation initiatives.

The session will discuss how new media platforms are changing the way government-disseminated information is consumed by the public. The panel discussion will also take a look at how technology is redefining the role of the peacemaker in solution-focused negotiations and how peacemaking efforts can be bolstered by technologies such as blockchain and AI.

The closed-door session on the ‘Future of the Media’ will take a deep look at the future of the relationship between the media and government. At a time when the media is emerging as a key player in society and an important stakeholder in delivering effective governance, the session will explore how the government and media can build a strong relationship.

The session will also discuss how the media can play a constructive role in supporting governments in advancing development.

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