Training programme for Serbian diplomats launched

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Belgrade, Serbia, 4 October 2017. DiploFoundation, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Serbia, and the British Embassy in Belgrade, have announced the start of a new training programme on strategic communication for Serbian senior and junior diplomats.

The announcement was made on 4 October by Serbian Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mr Ivica Dačić, and the British Ambassador to Serbia, HE Denis Keefe, who addressed participants of the first training workshop.

The first of nine workshops, which ran on 3-4 October, was delivered by Mr Jimmy Leach, former Head of Digital Diplomacy at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO), who contributed to the development and implementation of the FCO’s social media strategy. The FCO’s strategy set a standard in strategic communication and e-diplomacy for foreign ministries around the world. The workshop tackled the use of social media in diplomacy.

Upcoming workshops will be delivered by lecturers including Dr Biljana Scott, a DiploFoundation lecturer and senior fellow, and an associate of the Chinese Institute at Oxford University; Mr Valeriu Nicolae, former State Counsellor at the Prime Minister’s Chancellery of Romania; and Ms Mary Murphy, a DiploFoundation lecturer and trainer in communications. Junior diplomats taking part in the programme will also be given access to a range of Diplo’s online courses.

The project aims to raise awareness and develop the skills needed for a more efficient public diplomacy capacity of Serbia’s future diplomatic core, one that is transparent, accountable, and citizen-centric, and in line with current trends and needs imposed by the digital era. The project, implemented by DiploFoundation and supported by the British Embassy in Belgrade,  runs until May 2018.

Jimmy Leach delivering the workshop.