In the digital age, governments should not fear transparency

Given dramatically shifting world dynamics, governments should not fear transparency, but rather embrace it, argues Sheikh Sultan bin Ahmed Al Qasimi

Given dramatically shifting world dynamics, governments should not fear transparency, but rather embrace it. Photos: iStock Photos

One of the most important achievements of the communication revolution has been the ease of access to information, making it imperative for governments, politicians and economists to maintain transparency in their approach to various issues. Today, it is no longer possible to alter or change facts without being tracked down by social or online media users.

This bold new age of communication has prompted a seamless electronic debate that has helped develop a broad, strong and very effective public opinion on core issues. Such opinions have already influenced social development and public consciousness at community and state levels.

Currently, issues such as women’s rights, citizenship, labour rights, protection of minorities, and the preservation of the environment, among others define a nation’s ability and readiness to implement proactive business transactions on the ground.

They serve as proof of the advancement of the country and as evidence of foundations for sustainable development that encourage investment. Such factors build the nation’s credibility as a hub for business and help maintain a strong relationship between the government, its people and service providers.

This underlines the important role of government communication in shaping the public’s attitude on critical issues. Every state looking to achieve global leadership must share its own experience and journey in supporting human and environmental issues and set an example on how to resolve these issues. It must create an interactive platform for the exchange of knowledge, experiences and best practices.

Inevitably, governments today must ensure greater transparency when communicating their stance on vital public issues. At the same time, they need to adopt a bolder approach in dealing with such issues to achieve optimal and sustainable solutions. Sharing country-specific experiences based on facts is a good way to move forward.

As mentioned earlier, the telecommunications and internet revolution have laid governments and their decisions open to public scrutiny, allowing the public to assess these actions and hold governments accountable.

In the age of the social media, governments face a challenge to ensure that the public and media are in sync when it comes to airing their opinions on important issues like tourism, investment and trade.

After all, who would consider visiting a country that persecutes its citizens or doesn’t preserve the environment? Which investor will put his money into a country with no transparency or fair and clear laws? Aren’t clear laws, transparency and preservation of the environment and natural resources as critical to investors as ensuring a sound investment infrastructure?

To avoid contradictions and misinterpretation of their messages and the reality on the ground, governments today resort to innovative ways of communication with the world. They do so by focusing on research that sheds light on the progress made in addressing various issues, and by organising visits and receiving delegations to share their experiences with the world.

Given the dramatically shifting world dynamics, governments should not fear transparency, but rather adopt it as a standard in all their official communication with a clear understanding that the public is no longer blinkered, and can easily separate the wheat from the chaff.

Sheikh Sultan bin Ahmed Al Qasimi is the chairman of Sharjah Media Centre