What makes internet communication effective in informing policy?

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What makes internet communication effective in
informing policy?

• Euforic/ODI Meeting, London, 2nd June 2005

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Content

• Networking
• Identifying IC strategies
• Collaborative ways of sharing information
• Informing within the ACP-EU context
• Potential of weblogs as IC tools
• CTA Brussels weblog
• Conclusion

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Networks

• Networks can be effective in informing policy
• Thematic and knowledge networks can be considered
  useful tools in development
• To be effective, the network must correspond to
  an expressed need of network members to connect,
  share, discuss and learn
• Networks are still demand-driven (relying on
  donors projects) or dependent on a very limited
  number of leaders within

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Networking

• Limiting factors for networking
• Time networking needs time and long term
  commitments
• Willingness to collaborate and sharing knowledge
  and experience
• Leadership strength and threat
• Financial capacity to absorb and spend funds
• Limitations to be able to participate effectively
  in policy debate

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Identifying IC strategies

• How can we best use information to inform and
  influence policy?
• How to use knowledge not just to exchange but to
  translate into practical activities?
• How to improve the interaction between
  policy-researchers and policy-makers and
  community-based actors?
• How to strengthen capacity of ACP partners to
  produce, manage and use information?

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Collaboration in sharing information

• The European networks, platforms and
• organisations active in development
• Beneficiaries/users
• Strengthening existing communities
• Stimulating new ideas and approaches
• Empowering new communities (NSA, youth)
• Summarising and packaging information to specific
  users needs
• Identifying common targets for lobbying activities

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Sharing information

• Promoting learning process and knowledge
• acquisition
• Strengthening continued dialogue and exchange of
  information
• Collaborating for knowledge sharing
• Coordinating/repackaging information
• Creating virtual platforms that people can access
  and join

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Informing ACP-EU context

• Informing about
• Policy environment interesting and affecting ACP
  groups- issues related to agricultural and rural
  development
• Main ACP-EU policy actors in the various areas
• Need for feedback from ACP actors is critical,
  especially on the relevance of information

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Informing ACP-EU context

• Informing with/through
• Limited resources
• Free and open platforms
• Quick delivery means of information
• Informal and evolving/adaptable format
• Connectivity and digital divide needs to be
  addressed alternative means are used (such as
  fax, CD-ROMs, etc.)

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Informing ACP-EU context

• Informing
• A wide variety of actors grassroots
  organisations, NGOs, academic institutions,
  press, policy-makers, etc.
• CTA colleagues in the various programmes
• Partners in development

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CTA Brussels Office

• ACP-EU Liaison
• Monitoring developments and activities in the
  relevant ACP and EU fora and related bodies
• Arranging periodic briefings to various audiences
  on CTA's activities (ambassadors,
  parliamentarians, farmers groups)
• Securing and summarizing, where relevant,
  material on activities in the rural and
  agricultural sector of ACP states
• Attending the main relevant ACP-EU events

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What is a blog?

• A weblog (usually shortened to blog, but
  occasionally spelled web log) is a webpage
  consisting of periodic posts, normally in
  chronological order. A widely-accepted definition
  of a "blog" or "weblog" is "A Web page containing
  brief, chronologically arranged items of
  information".
• The challenge is to have a well-maintained,
  high-quality weblog that provides a valuable and
  new service and not just the purpose of providing
  the owner with an online public space.

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Why a Weblog?

• Weblog - http//brussels.cta.int
• Objective to share the information produced by
  the CTA
• Brussels office and other relevant information
  from ACP-
• EU and other groups with our partners in ACP
  countries
• involved in the ARD sector
• Content of the weblog
• a daily updated News section
• a monthly updated Resources section which gives
  information on the EU, the ACP group, joint
  ACP-EU bodies
• A calendar on main Brussels events
• Information on programmes and activities
  organised by the CTA Brussels office
• A weekly news bulletin

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CTA Brussels Weblog

• What type of information?
• Over 150 news items to date.
• Various CTA themes (related to agricultural and
  rural development and to information and
  communication, corresponding to the CTA mandate).
  Although it is difficult to clearly limit the
  scope of the relevant information, the main areas
  covered are agriculture, IC (impact of EU
  decisions on ACP countries)
• Over 100 calendar items (only events taking place
  in Brussels and related to the described areas).

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CTA Brussels Weblog

• How?Standard weblog functions Multilingual
  handling (FR and EN) Email handling (character
  sets) Calendar function Archiving
  Search.Article "contextualize" by listing it
  among related articles from different sources.
• Articles posted every day/two days at different
  times. Archive of old postings and easily
  retrieval through search.Core sources reviewed -
  EC, Newsletters, Google news, ACP sources, Press.
  Collaboration with Euforic, EADI, ELDIS, ECDPM,
  Inter-réseaux, ACP Press.
• E-mailed to 1200 subscribers each weekend

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CTA Brussels Weblog

• Who?Mainly ACP nationals both in country and
  Brussels, emphasis on producers other news
  editors (reposted in other systems) EC and
  Donors NGOs and think tanks
• Visitors 500 unique visitors/month in EN and 300
  FR.

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Future options

• Thematic access
• RSS feed (already available through ELDIS)
  linkages with other sites and services
• Interactive/Dialogue (now done by e-mail)
• Collaboration with other ACP and EU groups
• To promote its use amongst colleagues in ACP
  countries.
• The reason for the weblog popularity is the ease
  of use, low cost and the opportunity to use any
  design. The weblog format of an online diary
  makes it possible for users without much
  experience to create, format, and post entries
  with ease. It is ideal for networks and the
  South.