On September 10 and 11, the Emirate of Sharjah will witness the activities of the 14th session of the International Government Communication Forum under the slogan ”Communication for Quality of Life”, which includes more than 22 interactive platforms hosted by Expo Sharjah Center.
The event constitutes a global intellectual platform that examines the future of the relationship between governments and societies from a communication perspective and places the needs of society at the heart of public needs.
In this year’s session, organized by the Sharjah Government Media Office, the Forum presents an integrated vision on expanding communication roles into a truly influential tool in food security, public health, education, environmental sustainability, and the green economy, which are axes that all share one point, which is the quality of human life.
The forum raises the issue of food security as a pillar of social and economic stability and reviews how government communication can contribute to building sustainable food awareness and stimulating the adoption of agricultural systems and modern technologies that ensure optimal use of resources and preserve biodiversity.
United Nations reports indicate that more than 670 million people may face malnutrition by 2030 and that about 258 million people currently suffer from severe food insecurity.
These shocking numbers reinforce the need for effective communication strategies that link community awareness with sovereign decisions and transform messages into real tools for change.
The forum discusses the role of communication in transforming health crises into opportunities to build more aware and responsive societies through communication strategies and campaigns that mitigate the effects of food insecurity and address economic and social gaps, in light of what the World Health Organization confirms that 45% of deaths of children under five are linked to malnutrition.
Her Excellency Alia Al Suwaidi, Director of the Sharjah Government Media Office, said that this year’s forum is completing its proposals to consolidate the idea of communication as an essential element for engineering strategies and leading positive change, pointing to the role of communication in enhancing community participation and building the relationship between the government and the public on the foundations of transparency, trust and empowerment.
She stressed that communication is a key development tool for improving quality of life, explaining that this year’s session of the forum constitutes a call to rethink the roles of communication and expand its functions to respond to environmental, economic and social challenges for a more sustainable future and provide a better life for generations.
Al Suwaidi explained that since its launch in 2012, the forum has been able to consolidate its position as an influential intellectual platform at the regional and international levels, bringing together decision-makers, thinkers and experts within a multidisciplinary dialogue to address global challenges from a communication perspective and present models and strategies based on knowledge and experience.
The forum attaches special importance to education as a long-term means of communication to empower generations, and reviews models for developing educational curricula and linking them to future skills such as sustainable agriculture and modern technology, enabling young people to provide practical solutions to agricultural and climate challenges and contribute to ensuring long-term food security.
In a related context, the forum discusses the role of government communication in reshaping urban behavior and lifestyles in future cities through awareness campaigns that enshrine the concepts of reducing waste, recycling, and living according to a responsible environmental pattern.
Figures and statistics indicate that humanity wastes approximately 1.3 billion tons of food annually, equivalent to 31% of global production, while millions suffer from hunger. This highlights the importance of building government narratives that change behavior and do not simply convey information.
The forum also presents the concept of government narrative as one of the most prominent tools of influence that provides information and contributes to formulating a new awareness that strengthens the relationship between governments and the public through a participatory institutional narrative.
The forum provides a perspective on effective government narratives that move beyond mere policy promotion to simulating people’s needs in human language and translating environmental or food challenges into stories that are close to the individual’s reality and that he can understand and relate to.
The government narrative in the files of food waste and climate change embodies a means of persuasion, a tool for changing behavior, and an emotional and social motivator that creates a shift in concepts and customs.
The forum also discusses the role of the green economy in food sustainability and quality of life, and the opportunities offered by government policies and partnerships with the private sector to adopt agricultural practices and technologies that transfer carbon emissions by up to 30% by 2050.
United Nations studies indicate that every dollar invested in sustainable agriculture brings 2.5-fold economic and social benefits, while a green economy could create more than 24 million jobs globally by 2030.
