Assessing the Role of Public Relations in Internationalisation of TVET: A Case of Sub Saharan Africa

By

Lewis Msasa

Senior Public Relations Specialist, TEVETA Malawi

Private Bag B406

Malawi

Email: lmsasa@tevetamw.com

Website: www.tevetamw.com

A Presentation prepared for the IVETA 2014 Conference in Helsinki, Finland on 20th August, 2014

Sub theme 2: Improving  the Quality and attractiveness of TVET through international Cooperation

Abstract

The phrase “Technical and Vocational Education and Training” (TVET) was adopted to reflect the combined process of education and training and to recognise that employment be the common objective of its immediate goal (UNESCO, 2002). Although TVET system is being recognized as instrumental for socioeconomic development in most countries, studies indicate that the system is failing to match with the skills, attitudes and knowledge demands from the market, partly due to rapid technological developments, globalisation as well as rapid transformation of occupations (Jimat, 2009).  As such, the public harbours negative attitudes on TVET in the wake of its failure to provide a panacea for unemployment. Within the same armpits, the media  has also embraced these negative attitudes hence poor coverage and misrepresentation of information on TVET.

The  paper, therefore,  aims to discuss the role of Public Relations (PR) in the coverage and internationalisation  of TVET and how PR can make TVET internationally attractive. The paper argues that a vibrant PR can make TVET global and attractive  to prospective students beyond the country boundaries. Strategies such as harnessing the potential of PR can help in creating an international platform where professionals involved in PR practices within TVET could  share innovative ideas on how the national and global image of TVET can be improved hence making TVET provision an internationally seamless service.

1. Introduction

The 21st Century has brought with it siginificant advances in the political, economic and technological fronts which have resulted into the creation of a global village. As such internationalisation coupled with rapid developments in information technology has in the recent years turned out to be one of the major issues of discourse in the modern society, ultimately having an impact on most citizens and societal institutions. In the process cross boarder information exchange is now becoming the order of the day. 

Amidst all this has been the indirect ‘intercultural’ effects of Information Communication Technology (ICT) whose obvious facilities have assisted in cutting across physical boundaries and geographical distances by linking people around the world (Davis, 1999 cited in Richards, 2004). This, according to Davis, 1999 (cited in Richards, 2004), has made ICT to be increasingly recognized as a key organizing vehicle for various notions of ‘globalization’ and imperatives of ‘internationalization’ in education. Over time a platform for exchange of information and developments in the TVET sector has emerged.

 Internationalisation in TVET can be defined as a process of intergrating an international dimension into teaching, research and services functions of various institutions in the TVET sector (Knight, 1997 cited in UNESCO: 2014). According to Knight, internationalisation is a key component for development of higher education and it is manifested through aspects such as international interaction, exchanges in technological development, cross boarder movement of employees, sharing expertise and academic networking. Internationalisation is good for international competition and transferability of goods and services. The International Vocational Education and Training Association (IVETA) is an example where such aspects are being manifested.

However, on the other side of the coin some schools of thought have faulted internationalisation, urguing that it is there to strengthen international  competition  at the expense of international cooperation among countries and institutions while some fear that promotion of cultural diversity could bring in issues of a single language and advancement of western culture (Unesco:2014).

2. Background to internationalisation of TVET and Public Relations

It has to be accepted that with globalisation no country or institution would claim to possess an inherent immunity from the effects of internationalisation. Likewise, those in the TVET sector cannot claim to cut themselves from the international networks like the International Vocational Education and Training Association (IVETA).  This, therefore, calls the need for those in the TVET sector to find ways and means of ensuring how  issues related to internationlisation of TVET could be enhanced. Public Relations could in the process play an important role in the internationalisation of TVET by managing and facilitating  sharing of these innovative ideas by, among others, facilitating the creation of a structured but seamless network.

While the debate on internationlisation of TVET is gathering mommentum, experts in the TVET sector have in the recent years been converging   in various fora to bang heads on how best to internationalise  TVET with a number of resolutions  being made. For instance, one of the issues which the Hangzhou Declaration noted, was   the “current marginalisation of TVET vis a vis general and academic education” hence  recommended that communication via knowledge networking should be an important aspect that would contribute towards development process(Unesco, 2004: 23 .

The major  challenge, currently, is that the TVET sector as argued by  Msasa (2014) is still regarded lowly,  resulting into poor coverage of the sector’s programmes and activities. In other words, the general feeling by the public and even parents is that the vocational education is considered as being fit for only the academically less endowed (African Union, 2007). As such there has to be some mechanism that should be devised in order to  reverse this situation because such perceptions could negatively affect efforts toward internationalisation in the TVET sector. The only way to arrest this situation is by, among others, providing accurate information which would make the sector attractive through effective public relations programmes and activities. As Alison  (2010) puts it, Public Relations if employed effectively could ensure that the public has an accurate view of the organisation, in this case the TVET sector. The negative perceptions that the public has on TVET is probably a reflection of the public’s lack of or inadequate knowledge about the sector as well as the important role that it could play in any country’s economy.

In Malawi the Technical, Entrepreneurial and Vocational Education and Training Authority (TEVETA)1 which was established by  the TEVET Act of Parliament No. 6 of 1999 to regulate TEVET has a Public Relations  division. The division’s responsibility is to raise the profile of the TEVET sector in Malawi, by among others, ensuring that its programmes and activities are attractive and well-covered by the media.  Over the years efforts have been undertaken by TEVET Authority’s Public Relations division in order to fulfil this mandate through various PR activities such as media tours, panel discussions and sharing  of success stories through feature articles in both electronic and print media, career talks and facilitating various forums where topical issues on TEVET are discussed. However, a study which was commissioned by  TEVETA  Malawi to evaluate the impact of   Public Relations noted that there still appears to be some elements of misrepresentation or in most cases, blackout of information about TEVET in Malawi media, a situation that has resulted into various stakeholders having inadequate knowledge on the activities being undertaken in the TEVET sector (IEC Report, 2011).  For instance the public still fails to difefrentiate between TEVET, the system and TEVETA, the authority. The study also noted that the public has a feeling that TEVET courses are pursued by those who have not been successful  in general eduation. However,  while acknowledging that Public Relations has a significant role to play in TEVET, the study singled out inadequate capacity in audience research for the institution as the root cause of the problem of why Public Relations has not been having an impact on TVET (TEVETA: 2012).

The TEVET Authority case study provides some insights and challenges that public relations is facing but at the same time it offers some hope that , potentatially Public Relations could play a vital role in the internationalisation of TVET and ensuring that the sector is attractive.

Therefore, this paper aims to assess the role of Public Relations in internationalisation of TVET by, among other things, examining various issues within the Public Relations arena and internationalisation of TVET with particular focus on Sub Saharan Africa perspectives.  Africa merits a special mention when it comes to studying the role of Public Relations in the internationalisation of TVET because of the diversity of issues  and challenges that  have a  bearing on communication. Firstly,  in Sub Saharan Africa globalisation has created a tension between skills required for global economic competitiveness and developing skills for poverty eradication. This has culminated into African countries pursuing the development of skills at all levels of the spectrum (basic, secondary, tertiary levels), with each country putting emphasis on  the skill levels that correspond best to their stage of economic development and the needs of the local labour market (African Union:2007).

Secondly, the international media channels in Africa are many but the problem with these is that they tend to lose their value in the process of trying to ‘de-westernise’ their programmes in order to make issues covered more African in terms of localism and relevance (Sririvamesh and Vercic (2009). The fact that media programmes are in either English, French, Portuguese which are mostly spoken by the affluent they tend to be  limited to a specific public hence denying the majority from accessing information about TVET. This means that as Sririvamesh and Vercic (2009) put it all this has to be taken into consideration when planning and managing for effective Public Relations programmes depending   on the needs of the each country and institution.

3. The Global Perspectives on Technical and Vocational Education and Training

At the Second International Congress on Technical and Vocational Education in Seoul in 1999 and at the 30th Session of the General Conference of UNESCO held in Paris in 1999, members agreed on the adoption of the phrase “Technical and Vocational Education and Training” (TVET) to reflect the combined process of education and training and at the same time recognise that employment be the common objective of their immediate goal (UNESCO,1999 cited in UNESCO 2002). Despite the TVET system being recognized as instrumental for socioeconomic development in most countries, studies indicate that the system is failing to match with the skills, attitudes and knowledge demands from the market, partly due to rapid technological developments, globalisation as well as rapid transformation of occupations (Jimat, 2009).  Ultimately as noted by Unesco (2004:13) “the current marginalisation of TVET vis a vis general and academic education” has in the  recent years been a source of debate in various fora.

This have resulted into the public harbouring negative attitudes on TVET in the wake of its failure to provide a panacea for high unemployment rates, according to Jimat (2009). These negative attitudes on the TVET, as noted by African Union (2007) emanate from the fact that globally the education system continues to focus on basic and higher education . As the result TVET is considered inferior and those who venture into it consider it as a second choice after failing to pursue other careers. Ultimately, many do not consider technical and vocational education occupation as important because of the stigma attached to it. Although the majority consider TVET as inferior, most students who fail to make it to higher education, nevertheless end up going into labour market without skills (Unesco, 2002). All these issues do pose a challenge when it comes to internationalisation of the TVET sector.

Over the years efforts towards internationalisation of the TVET sector have been manifested in the formation of various regional blocks  whose ojectives, among others, has been the harmonization of TVET systems through development of a Regional Qualifications Frameworks which seek  to enable Member States to compare and recognize qualifications obtained in the region. For instance, on 8th September, 1997  Heads of State and Government met in Blantyre, Malawi to discuss ways and means of  promoting  deeper regional integration. The meeting culminated into  the formation of the SADC Protocol on Education and Training, which seeks to establish legal and institutional frameworks to promote regional integration in specific priority areas of education, training, research and development. Among others, the protocal works towards the relaxation and eventual elimination of immigration formalities in order to facilitate freer movement of students and labour within the Region for the specific purposes of study, teaching, research and any other pursuits relating to education and training. 

Although there has been this movement and a lot of resolutions being made at various fora towards internationalisation in TVET, not much has been shared among the stakeholders involved in the TVET sector, a situation that has resulted into creationof a kind of information imbalance.

However , if  Vocational Education and training is understood as a crossing point between human, society, nature and technology, production and economy “one could see communication via knowledge networking being an important aspect that could contribute towards the development process” (UNESCO, 2014:33).

This, therefore, calls for the urgent need to harness  the role of Public Relations in the Sub Saharan Africa in order to  check this information imbalance which could hamper internationalisation of TVET.

4.   Contextualising Public Relations in Internationalisation of TVET

In the modern world Public Relations is being used globally and that it is playing a crucial role in international relations and trade. But for the role of Public Relations to be appreciated it is necessary to understand various perspectives within the realim of Public Relations and how these could be put to use in the TVET sestor in line with emerging issues in globalisation. In the process aspects such as challenges being faced and the environment in which in which the public relations practioners operate could be also be appreciated. This information becomes handly when planning  various public relations  interventions towards the internationalisation of TVET in the wake of globalisation.

Sriramesh, (2009) argues that globalisation has in the recent years played an important role in ensuring that Public Relations body of knowledge moves towards greater cultural relativism which has in the process become relevant to the practitioners who are oftentimes faced with challenges in communicating effectively with the diverse publics. This is why it is important  that Public Relations practioners should have an understanding of the society where TVET as a sector is operating in their respective countries. Society in this case is an aggregation of material aspects which boarder on economic resources and power; social relationships like national societies, families and social roles and occupations which are either formally or informally regulated (McQuail, 2010). Since globalisation started  gathering momomentum  so many effects have featured highly  as the result of the elimination of trade barriers among the nations. These include  cultural diversity and development of a confluence of various publics such as employees, consumers  and members of the media as they try to respond to forces of globalisation.. Secondly,  globalisation has been acceralated by media and communication- ICTs through rapid changes in communications such as the proliferation of social media which is fast  turning the world into a seamless and borderless entity. Above all, what Sriramesh (2009) observes is the  realisation of the fact that human race must to come together and address various common problems which include environmental pollution, terrorism, nuclear proliferation and over population which have resulted in poverty and hunger, all of which led to increased  international cooperation and  intercultural communication.  Viewing developments from this vintage point, one would see the need for public relations to respond to such trends in globalisation. Public Relations , therefore, has to be understood and defined within the context of globalisation as  “ the Strategic Communication that different types of organisations use for establishing and mainstreaming symbiotic relationships with relevant publics many of whom are increasingly becoming culturally diverse (Sriramesh and Vercici, 2009 P.xxxiv). 

In the context of the TVET sector, it means this definition is embracing the issues of symbiotic relationships that would emerge in internationalisation of skills demand and supply. It is also important that Public Relations must embrace issues of cultural diversity in order to provide safety valves that should contain the imbalances that would emerge as the result of globalisation.

However, for Public  Relations to be effective in the internationalisation of TVET it has to be applied or rather implemented within some generic principles such as empowerment of personnel responsible for Public Relations; Public Relations to be taken as an intergral communications function; a separate management function as well as a strategic management function and that Public Relations should be diverse and ethical as advanced by Grunig  (2009). But one aspect that should not be overlooked is that these generic principles cannot be applied in a kind of one-size-fits all  approach because as Sririmech and Vercic (2009) argue, ‘environment’ for Public Relations is not the same in all countries. For Public Relations to be effective, Sririmech and Vercic (2009) proposes that  the conceptual framework from which the generic principals were derived by Grunig be linked with the variables  such as the  cultural (societal and organisational), media environment, the economic system,  the political system and level of development and activitism of a particular country. These elements are important and should not be overlooked  when formulating communication strategies that are aimed at popularising  TVET in a particular country while at the same time addressing issues related to internationalisation of TVET.

On the other hand,  while trying to understand Public Relations, media and news should be understood when planning  Public Relations in the TVET sector because as Cottle (2003) puts it, the media is a major conduit of information in a society where both cultural identities and commercial interests jostle for media space, prompting institutions to strategically position themselves. The implication is that the TVET sector should be strategically positioned to ensure that matters related to internationalisation of TVET do not skip media spotlight.

In the process Public Relations practioners could become handy because of their ability to understand the Agenda Setting theory of news. By definition Agenda Setting is “a process of media influence (intended or unintended) by which the relative importance of news events, issues or personages in the public mind are affected by the order of presentation (or relative salience) in news reports” (Macquail, 2010: p.548). This is an important aspect in Public Relations practice because it enables both the public and public relations practitioners to appreciate the ability of media to influence the audience cognition and at the same time effect change among the existing cognitions on TVET. A number of studies  have been carried out, the most significant being the one done by Bernard Cohen when he wanted to find out whether there was a relationship between the press and foreign policy where he   found that “the press is significantly more than a purveyor of information and opinion. It may not be successful much of the time in telling people what to think, but it is stunningly successful in telling its readers what to think about” (Cohen, 1963: p.13 cited in Newbold, 2005). Complementary studies on  Agenda Setting were carried out by McCombs and Shaw, 1972 (cited in Newbold, 2005) where  they discovered a strong relationship between those topics which were featured highly in the mass media coverage and those that were in the minds of the audience.

But as Macquail (2002) argues, the media influence may not necessarily be a reflection of its opinion but it is simply going by what people think probably in trying to be objective although Mackinnon (1982: p.237 cited in Litchenberg, 2000) contend that objectivity is viewed as a strategy of hegemony employed by some sections within a society in order to dominate others. The implication is that it might happen  in trying to be objective the media could be faced with a situation where it would give it would give some activities or news events  more coverage than others activities. In that case if TVET as a sector is considered by the public as of low status as argued by Jimat (2009) then one would not expect the media to give it much coverage as way of making it attractive. This means it might be problematic for issues related to internationalisation of TVET to be well publicised if there are no proper Public Relations strategies  in place. 

On the other hand, the Marxist theory acknowledges the existence of a relationship between economic ownership and the dissemination of information which does affirm the legitimacy and the value of class of society. This implies that as Cottle (2003:p.136) puts it “those who have access to news discourse can shape public opinion and set agenda for action”. Probably this is where, in the process of internationalisation of TVET, Public Relations could play a role in shaping the attitudes that the public has on TVET.

4.1 Role of Public Relations

Considering the diversity of  Public Relations definitions being put forward by various authorities in the field, it has always been problematic to appreciate its  roles. Alison (2010: 26) has managed to summarise what Public Relations is capable of achieving  by providing a rough guide of the activities involved in Public Relations in Table 1 below.

Table one: A Rough Guide to main activities of Public Relations

Public Relations Activity	Explanation	Examples
Internal Communication	Communicating with Employees	In-house newsletter, suggestion boxes
Corporate PR	Communicating on behalf of whole organization not goods or services	Annual reports, conferences, Ethical statements, visual identities, images
Media Relations	Communicating with journalists; Specialists; Editors from local, national, international and Trade media, including newspapers, magazines, radios, TV and web based communication	Press Releases, photo calls, video news releases, off the record briefings, press events
Business to Business	Communicating with other  organizations e.g. Suppliers, Retailers	Exhibition, Trade events, newsletter
Public Affairs	Communicating with opinion formers (e.g. Local and national politicians), monitoring political environments	Presentations, briefings, private meetings, public speeches
Community Relations/Corporate Social Responsibility	Local communities, electedrepresentatives, head teachers etc	Exhibitions, Presentations, letters, meetings, sports activities and other sponsorships
Investor Relations	Communicating with Financial Organisations/Individuals	Newsletters, briefings, events
Strategic Communications	ID and analysis of situations, problems and solutions to further organizational goals	Researching and executing a campaign to improve ethical reputation of an organization
Issues management	Monitoring political, social, economic and technological environment	Considering effect of the issues in the party manifestos during campaign and these could impact on say TEVETA (my emphasis).
Crisis Management	Communicating clear messages on fast changing situation of emergency	Dealing with media after the closure of a TEVET institution due to substandard structures (my emphasis).
Copy writing	Writing for different audiences to high standards or literacy	Press Releases, news releases, web pages, annual report
Publications Management	Overseeing print/media processesoften using new technology	Leaflets, internal magazines, web sites
Events management, Exhibitions	Organisations of complex events, exhibitions	Annual conferences, press launch, trade shows

Source: Alison (2010: p 10)

Deducing from the Table One   it could be seen that Public Relations  is complex and can  sometimes be easily  misunderstood and even misinterpreted. Strategically others have inseparably associated Public Relations to involvement and presence of media. With these multi-faceted roles it is not a surprise that Public Relations has always been referred to by various nomenclature depending on the nature and needs of the institution. For instance the Botswana Qualifications Authority, refers the department which handles  Public Relations issues as Communications and Customer Service; at TEVETA  Zambia it is refferred to as Information, Education and  Communication while at TEVETA Malawi it is referred to as Corporate Affairs  Division.

But  regardless of  what   nomenclature   Public Relations could be referred to the most important aspect is to ensure that the public has an accurate view of the organisation  (Alison, 2010).  Thus as internationalisation of  TVET is gaining currency it is imperative that the general public is given accurate information which would make it  have a sound understanding of the TVET system which could   influence positively perceptions, knowledge and attitude on TVET. And it is believed that Public Relations has the ability to play this crucial role.

5. A bird’s eye view of the Media in Sub Saharan Africa

At this juncture, it is evedently clear that the role of Public Relations in internationalisation of TVET cannot be discussed in isolation. One of the precursors to the effectiveness of Public Relations effectiveness is the presence of channels of communication which could be used as a vehicle towards internationalisation of TVET. As earlier noted, Africa especially the Sub-Saharan Region merits a special mention when it comes to studying the role of Public Relations in  the internationalisation of TVET because of the diversity of issues  and challenges that could have a   bearing on communication.

For Public Relations to become instrumental in changing the perceptions, attitudes and behaviour of people towards TVET there must be some good communication infrastructure. But a closer look at Public Relations field in the Sub-Saharan Africa reveals a number of challenges such as a huge variation in terms of access to new media and lack of communication infrastructure as major challenges. For example Tanzania with a population of 34 million has about 15 well established daily, weeklies coming out in both English and Swahili with a circulation of 4 per thousand people. There are also specialist newspapers like the Business Times and some independent TV and Radio Stations. On the other hand, South Africa with a population of 40 million has 82 national, regional dailies and weeklies mainly in English and Afrikaans with indigenous languages left out. Circulation is about 34 per thousand people. Malawi with a population 15 million has six major papers – The Nation, Weekend Nation and Nation on Sunday The Daily Times, Malawi News and Sunday Times with daily circulation in the ranges of 10,000 to 15,000 mainly in English. Nyasatimes is also fast establishing itself as an important online news source for Malawians especially those in Diasporas.

In terms of access to communication infrastructure, the International Telecommunication Union (2003) notes that cell phone subscription per 100 per in South Africa is at 27 while in Kenya is at five. But the good news is that uptake of ICT has in the recent years rapidly increased in some least developed countries (ITU, 2006). For instance Mali registered 142% while Djibouti, DRC, Niger and Sudan registered 186 %, 184%, 171 % and 139 % growth respectively. This does offer a glimmer of hope although as observed by ITU (2006) that such hope is paled by challenges such as lack of response by policy makers and regulators to rapid and unprecedented developments in telecommunications markets which have emerged. For instance, ITU (2006) says there appears to be unrealistic restrictions and barriers in some countries to the developments and dissemination of the benefits of internet protocols (IP) and scarcity of ICT infrastructure and high cost of internet connectivity which has resulted into the majority of the population in the Sub Saharan region not enjoying to the fruits of new media to the maximum.

The UK based Gyroscope Consultancy has been analysing these variations in terms of availability of information as a major challenge in Africa and has thus created what is called “ African Communications Index (ACI)’ . The ACI is a tool that could be handy when it comes to measuring the level at which PR and Communication could be strategically used starting from planning, management and delivery in a particular country as a well as the degree to which the related desciplines could be effective in specific target audience. 

The ACI ranges from 0 to 100 which according to Gyroscope, the higher the index, the easier it is to plan and determine Public Relations and Corporate  communications in a particular country and more cost effective it could be in the delivery of specific messages to the target audience. The ACI is designed in the way that the higher the ACI, the higher the potential “Return on Investment” in communications activity. For instance, according to Sririmesh and Vercic (2009), South Africa with an index of 89.5 makes it easier to plan Public Relations than in Malawi which has an index of 27.85. Probably this could be the reason why those countries with lowest ACI index may not see the value for investing in Public Relations.

Such  diversity is worth noting because as Sririmesh and Vercic (2009) notes, it does pose challenges in terms of planning Public Relations and Corporate Communication on ‘pan African’ basis. This, therefore, calls the need for TVET institutions in Africa to invest adequately in Public Relations interventions in order for it to play an  effective role in internationalisation in TVET.

6. Public Relations and the new media

Modern Public Relations is dominated by the digital social media which has turned out to be a force to reckon with. Such social media include the Facebook, blogs, whatsup, Linkdin etc which are now becoming a major vehicle for conversations of various issues In other words, the internet has  unarguably revolutionalised the sharing of information. Unlike  in the previous forms of media where production happened to be highly  concentrated  and regulated, the new media which is mostly referred to as digital media has ushered in a new era where there is independent production of content which could be shared instantly and with undue restriction. Through digital media, it has been easy for publics to form and establish relationships anywhere in the world. The electronic media is now able to host online libraries of content waiting  to be accessed by users  unlike the broadcast media such as radio and telecommunication which transmits information over the air. For instance, due to its interactive nature, web 2.02  has the ability to reinforce Grunig’s notion of two-way symmetrical communication (Grunig,2009 cited in Sison, Sheehan, 2012). Blogs, social networks like Facebook and microblogs happen to be the most popular social media platforms (Sison, Sheehan, 2012).Furthermore, the internet technologies such as online media have altered the ‘agenda setting’ capabilities of the media producers. Therefore, the agenda setting function of the new media will depend on the PR practitioners’ ability to attract interested readers, listeners and viewers to issues about TVET  because “once a buzz has been generated over a particular issue, the exponential sharing of content through blogs, emails and word of mouth can provide that content with an unticipated global audience” (Danjoux, 2010:p15). The advantage of using these in internationalisation of TVET is that once the content becomes viral it is popularised exponentially and shared among internet users thereby making TVET a seamless service. But as these dialogues and conversations are taking place,  organisations and various institutions are thus urged to utilise Public Relations in order to facilitate their participation in the discourse (Grunig 2009).

For instance internet tools like the blogosphere have been used in the political arena as candidates are selling themselves to the electorate ( Danjoux, 2010). Likewise Public Relations practitioners could use the blogoshpere in gaining global attention for the TVET issues as a process acceratating of internationalitation of TVET.

Thus as advanced by  Grunig (2009), these digital media have the ability to  make public relations practice a global, strategic and two way and interactive symmetrical or dialogical and socially responsible if used in a strategic manner. All this implies that PR has the potential to effectively contribute towards internationalisation of TVET. In this regard the new media also promises some positive changes in the internationalisation of  the TVET sector if utilised to its potential.

7. Way forward and recommendations

The following are some of the recommendations could enhance the role of Public Relations in the internationalisation in TVET

• There must be aggressive marketing and PR strategies in place if the public is to appreciate what TVET can offer towards skills development.

• TVET institutions should endevour towards positioning Public Relations within a management function to ensure that whoever is responsible for Public Relations is part of senior management team where strategic decisions that would have a bearing on Public Relations are made. For instance, it is the duty of Public Relations to develop programmes that are aimed at communicating with strategic publicsand all those who have stakes in TVET sector.
• For effectiveness all public relations functions within a TVET institution should be intergrated into a single entity which should be coordinating  various departments responsible for communication activities.
• While appreciating the role of technicians in the day to day activities, best practices require that within the TVET insititution organisational set up there should be a senior manager who should be on top of things with capabilities to handle in matters related to Public Relations in a strategic manner
• TVET Public Relations machinery should adopt a two way or rather symetrical public relations with abilities to conduct research, listen and manage conflict and at the same culitivate relationships with both internal and extenal publics.
• Capacity building should be encouraged in the TVET sector to ensure that those handling Public Relations  issues are up to date with ICT  skills on how they can harness the power of new media like website, facebook, blogs, youtube etc which have capabilities to accesserate internationalisation of the TVET sector.
• Encourage exchange visits and   forum for Public Relations personnel in TVET sector where they could meet to discuss challenges and means of ehnancing issues concerning internationlisation of TVET

• Public Relations practitioners in TVET institutions should increase awareness and understanding to ensure that the public is able to appreciate the importance of Public Relations as a profession and how it can contribute to the internalisation of TVET.

• For those TVET institutions which have no Public Relations offices, they should work towards establishing one. Such an office can assist in raising the profile of the TVET, by among others, ensuring that its programmes and activities are well-covered by the media hence enhancing attractiveness of TVET. 

8. Conclusion

If the current trends where Public Relations  is now becoming a good source of news is anything to go by, it could safely be said that the field   has the potential towards internationalisation of the TVET considering its ability to serve as social and cultural agent in economic transformation in a particular society, be it outside or within (Tilson, 2008).

The  paper has discussed the role of Public Relations (PR) in the internationalisation  of TVET and how PR can make TVET internationally attractive. The discussion has revealed that although TVET system is being recognized as instrumental for socioeconomic development in most countries, the sector is still faced with negative attitudes in the wake of its failure to provide a panacea for unemployment. Unfortunately, the media  has also embraced these negative attitudes hence poor coverage and misrepresentation of information on TVET.

In conclusion the paper has argued  that a vibrant Public Relations could contribute tremendously towards making TVET global and attractive  to prospective students beyond the country boundaries. Strategies like  harnessing the potential of Public Relations by among others making it a strategic management function within TVET institutions and capacity building, creation of an international platform where professionals involved in PR practices within TVET could  share innovative ideas on how the national and global image of TVET can be improved hence making TVET provision an internationally seamless service.

Bibliography

Afromanagement (2010) the 2010 Malawi Media Survey: Radio Listenership, Television Viewership Newspaper Viewership

African Union (2007) Strategy to Revitalize Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) in Africa (www. africa-union.org accessed on 21st June, 2014)

Boyd-Barret, O, and Newbold, C. (eds) (1995) Approaches to Media; London: Edward Arnold

 Curran, J. (ed) (2010), Media and Society (Fifth Edition), London: Edward Arnold

Dutta, M. J., Ban, Z. & Pal, M. (2012). Engaging worldviews, cultures, and structures through dialogue: The culture-centred approach to public relations. PRism 9(2): http://www.prismjournal.org/homepage.html (Accessed on 10 July, 2014)

El-Astal, M.A.S. (2007). “Is Honesty an Absolute PR Value?”. Article published on the web site of the International Public Relations Association (IPRA), section “Frontline online” (issue of August 2007). URL: http://www.ipra.org/itl/08/2007/is honesty an absolute PR value? Accessed on March, 28, 2014 at 14.10.

Entman, R.M. Projecting Power in the News

In Entman, R..M. 2004. Projections of Power: Framing News, Public Opinion and US Foreign Policy. 1-17. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press.

From Old to New Learning

In globalisation, Society and Education.2004. 2(3) 337-353 Taylor and Francis

Grunig, J. E. (2009). Paradigms of global public relations in an age of digitalisation. PRism 6(2): http://praxis.massey.ac.nz/prism_on-line_journ.html Accessed on 10th March,2014

Hansen, A. et al (1998) Mass Communication Research Methods. London; MacMillan.

Information Education and Communication (IEC) 2011 Study Report

Jowett, G. and O’Donnell, V. (2006) What is Propaganda? In Jowett, G. and O’Donnell, V. Propaganda and Persuasion (4th Edition), pp.1-48. London: Sage.

Hall (1978) From Hall, S. Et al. (1978) Policing the Crisis, London, MacMillan, pp.53-66

Lilleker, D. and Negrine, R. (2002) Professionalization: Of what?  Since when?  By whom?  In Harvard International Journal of Press/Politics, 7(4), 98-103.

Lilleker, D. and Lees-Marshment, J. (2005) Conclusion In Lilleker, D. and Lees-Marshment, J. Political Marketing in Comparative Perspective, pp. 205-228. Manchester University Press.

Malawi Government (2013) TEVET Policy document

McNair, B. (2004) PR Must Die: Spin, Anti-Spin and Political Public Relations in the UK, 1997-2004. In Journalism Studies, 5(3), 325-338

Media, Culture and Society (2006 Vol.28 No.5, pp 763-784. London: Sage

McNair, Brian(20 04)'PR must die: spin, anti-spin and political public relations in the UK, 1997-2004',Journalism Studies,5:3,325 — 338

McManus, J.H., (1994) Market-Driven Journalism: Let the Citizen Beware? London: Sage

McQuail, D. (2010) McQuail’s Mass Communication Theory (6th Edition), London: Sage

Molotch, H. and Lester, M (1975) ‘Accidental news: The Great Spill’, American Journal of Sociology, 81 (2), 253-260.

McQuail, D. (2010) McQuail’s Mass Communication Theory (6th Edition). London: Sage

MediaCollege.com            http://www.mediacollege.com/journalism/news/newsworthy.html Accessed in March,2014

Msasa (2014) An Investigation into the Role of Public Relations in the Coverage of TEVET Authority Programmes and Activities in   the media Dissertation Submitted to University of Leicester in Partial Fulfilment of the Requirements for the MA Degree in Cummunication, Media and Public Relations (Unpublished) 

Murdock, G., Golding, P., (Undated): Culture, Communications and Political Economy. In Mass  Media and Society, (4th Edition) pp60-81) DMC Course Readers section accessed 20/05/2012

Office of the President and Cabinet (2011), Job Descriptions Handbook for TEVETA Volume 11

Palmer, J. (2000) News Values In Palmer, J.  Spinning into Control:  News values and Source Strategies.  London:  LUP/Continuum.

Park, S-A., Len-Ríos, M. E., & Hinnant, A. (2010). How intrinsic and extrinsic news factors affect health journalists’ cognitive and behavioural attitudes toward media relations. PRism 7(1):http://www.prismjournal.org  Accessed  on  10th March, 2014

Simon Cottle 2003 (ed) News Public Relations and Power. Sage London

Palmer, J (2000). News Values

In Spinning into Control: News Values and Source Strategies. 2000. pp 26-46. LUP/Continuum.

Sison, MD, Sheehan, M (2012) World Public Relations Forum Research Colloquium Conference Proceedings; Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre, Victoria Australia

Sriramesh, K. (2009). Globalisation and public relations: The past, present, and the future. PRism 6(2): http://praxis.massey.ac.nz/prism_on-line_journ.html (accessed on 20 July, 2014)

Theaker, Alison. Media Practice : Public Relations Handbook (4th Edition).

: Routledge, . p 22 http://site.ebrary.com/id/10535045?ppg=22

Tilson (2009) Evolution of Public Relations in Latin America:

Tilson (2008) The Social Role of Public Relations in Latin America: A Ten Country Community Relations Becoming Effective Public Relations Tool for a US Multinational

The Fork in the Road of Media and Communication Theory and Practice by Dr. Jim Macnamara Copyright © 2006, Institute for Public Relations, www.instituteforpr.org accessed on 20th March, 2014

Tilson, D and Schanabel, M (2008) The Social Role of Public Relations in Latin America: A ten Country community relations programme becomes an effective public Relations tool for a US multination

In Turk, J. and Scanlan, L. (eds) The Evolution of Public Relations: Case Studies from Countries in Transition (3rd edition). 2008.pp.195-213. Gainesville, FL: The Institute for Public Relations Research and Education

Tilley, E. (2005). Media relations. In F. Sligo & R. Bathurst (Eds.), Communication in the New Zealand workplace: Theory and practice prevention strategy. Paper presented at the International Federation of Scholarly Associations of Management (IFSAM) Conference, July 10-13, 2002, Gold Coast, Australia. Available at:

http://www.ifsam.org/2002/generalmanagement/Brujins_mcdonald%20(rev)PUB.htm

Tulloch, J. (1993) Policing the Public Sphere:  the British Machinery of News Management in Media, Culture & Society, 15 (3), 363-384.

UNESCO (2002), Revisiting Technical and Vocational Education in sub-Saharan Africa: An update on trends, innovations and Challenges, Paris

UNESCO (2002) Technical and Vocational Education and Training in the 21st Century(UNESCO, 2002 (www.scribd/doc/56306177/UNESCO-TVET accessed on 21st June, 2014)

UNESCO (2006) TVET Teacher Education on the Threshold of Internationalisation ( www.unicesco.org accessed on 7th June, 2014

Wahl-Jorgensen, K., Hanitzsch, J., (2009) Handbook of Journalism, Routledge, London

Wimmer R.D. and Dominick, J.R. (2010) Mass Media Research: An Introduction (9th ed).Belmont, CA; Wadsworth Thomson Learning of Media and Communications, University of Leicester, United Kingdom

1 TEVETA Malawi and TEVETA Zambia are probably the only authorities in the Sub Saharan Africa that have incorporated “Entrepreneurship” in TVET  in order to increase chances of TVET graduates going into self employment hence the reason why the two authorities refer it as “TEVET”

2 Web 2.0 is a collection is a collection of open source interaction and user controlled online application expanding the field experience and knowledge and power of users as participants  in business and social process

From CSOs to Parasites: The Case of Malawi

 

 

In their forthrightness, they amassed enough attributes to qualify as subjects, not of pride for God’s sake, but of ridicule.

Indeed, as the leaders of the Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) and Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) took turns in crying wolf- chasing each other like shadows over the surface of a mountain for a chance to shame themselves by making ridiculous requests- they showed that, like politicians, they are unwilling to throw in the towel when the going gets tough.

 

I am talking of a Southern Region interface meeting which NGO and CSO leaders had with Advisor to the President on NGOs, Mavuto Bamusi, recently as part of national consultations with CSO leaders premised on mending fences and improving collaboration.


May be we should start by defining NGOs and CSOs. According to www.ngopulse.com, CSOs are defined as organised civil society and can come in many forms, some informal and some as formal entities such as NGOs, CBOs, faith-based organisations (FBOs), among many others. This is when a group of individuals come together for a common purpose, as in to fulfill a particular mandate driven by need.


“CSOs have a constituency, as they have a clientele/beneficiaries whom they serve and ideally should represent that clientele,” reads a write up on the website.


On the other hand, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation describes CSOs and NGOs as institutions involved in campaign and research networks, teachers’ unions and religious organisations, community associations, parent and student associations, and social movements.

While the intention of holding the interface meeting must have been good, I soon got disappointed with the demands the leaders of the NGOs and CSOs were making. Save for the legitimate request that there is need to review current laws that regulate the operations of NGOs for the sole purpose that the laws should serve and protect the NGOs and not the government, I found other demands were outright unreasonable.

For instance, one of the NGO and CSO leaders demanded that the government should construct offices for NGOs and CSOs in all the administrative regions of the country. My foot!

Do we mean, after 50 years of independence, the NGOs and CSOs cannot find their own offices? I thought the demand was unreasonable because, already, the government has a load of rotten fruits on its shoulders. I am talking of statutory corporations and government departments that ‘consume’ more than they ‘produce’, piling a heavy burden on the overstretched taxpayer.

Indeed, it is for this reason that the government- of course reeling under the pressure of institutions such as the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund, and bilateral donors- was forced to swallow the bitter pill of privatisation.

In the melee of denationalisation that followed, thousands lost their jobs as the new private owners restructured the hitherto malfunctioning state companies into cash-cows.

Today, in a bid to further reduce the role of the government in the State economy, the talk is about Public Private Partnerships (PPP). To buttress the point, the Privatisation Commission has even changed its name to that effect.

So, why should the government be forced to off-load its burdens through privatisation, and, then, PPP on one hand, and then spend its scanty resources- tax-payers’ money to be precise- on NGOs and CSOs Malawians did not create in the first place?

To make matters worse, one of the CSO and NGO leaders suggested that the regional offices would not be enough; the government should also fund the NGOs and CSOs through Parliament!

What surprised me is the fact that the other NGO and CSO leaders clapped hands. It was such a shame that Bamusi could not gather the courage to tell them off, by ‘humbly’ reminding them that the government had enough on its plate, and that, in fact, it was committed to promoting PPP. What a missed opportunity!

May be these NGO and CSO leaders do not read widely. Otherwise, they would have learned that NGOs and CSOs are not off-springs of the State, despite them being allowed to operate after registering either under the Trustees Incorporation Act or the Companies Act, as is the case in Malawi.

Imagine the government providing free office space and annual subvention to NGOs and CSOs whose mandate is not clear! That would be grotesque, especially when we consider that the aid taps are still dry, and the taxpayer remains overburdened with unnecessary taxes that are only justifiable because the tax base is narrow.

 

May be the CSO and NGO leaders might not have raised their points had they visited www.ngopulse.com to learn that, ““A member of civil society represents their own views. It is very presumptuous of anyone to claim to represent the view of another as we often see. This does nothing but delegitimise the work done by CSOs and should be guarded against”.


The problem with our CSOs and NGOs is that they pretend, or have, somehow, come to believe, that they represent Malawians, and the views of all Malawians.


But, if I may ask, who ensures that there is transparency in the manner NGOs and CSOs hire their staff? Why, as Madalitso Musa recently observed in his ‘Tales of Time’ column, do some NGO and CSO leaders employ people from their home village? In some cases, half the population of a village finds itself moving to urban areas to fill the staff vacancies existing in an NGO or CSO, leaving half the population to farm and produce all the food back home.


If hunger strikes, should we blame policymakers for not doing enough yet the labour has boarded the next bus to town to make hay while the sun shines?


As things stand now, there are so many things that are unseating about NGOs and CSOs that it would be a non-starter for the government to provide office space and annual subvention to them.


Ironically, one of the non-state actors, the Centre for Multiparty Democracy (CMD), is in the forefront calling for the deregistration of all briefcase political parties!


May be New Labour Party president, Friday Jumbe, had a point when he challenged CMD’s overtures on Times Television on Thursday. Said Jumbe: “Where is CMD getting all the powers? It is just an NGO.”


There, in the statement that ‘It is just an NGO’ lies the pill of sanity for NGOs and CSOs. They are just NGOs and CSOs and should not bother the government- eer, taxpapers- with unreasonable demands. Let NGOs that operate without proper offices be deregistered for wasting Malawians’ time! Let CSOs that have no base be banished from the country.


More so when CSOs and NGOs are christened Partners in Development. Tell me, do partners ‘milk’ the very institutions they were meant to compliment?

 NGOs and CSOs should not begin to resemble the government- in terms of milking the taxpayer through unreasonable demands. The tax-paper, as recounted by history, has had a million economic mishaps since independence in 1964, the very mishaps that have made all post-colonial administrations merry for 50 years now.

 

I can only hope that the unreasonable suggestions were one of Malawi’s various windings on the road to democratic maturity, and that they will never see the light of day. After all, NGOs and CSOs are necessary in a democracy but lack a sense of purpose when they operate without offices and cry for government funding.

Taming Aflatoxin, The Silent Killer in Food: The Case of Malawi

Is it not ironic that the moulds that produce aflatoxin are more
visible than the prescription of death they pronounce on humankind? In legumes such as groundnuts, moulds wear their guts on the outside,
their colour laid out like a map to death. 


The Webster’s New World Medical Dictionary defines aflatoxin as “a
toxin produced by moulds that can damage the liver and may lead to liver cancer. Aflatoxins cause cancer in some animals. The fungi that produce aflatoxin grow on crops such as peanuts and wheat, corn,   beans, groundnuts and rice. Aflatoxin is a problem particularly in  undeveloped and developing countries”. 


Malawi, as one of the ‘developing’ countries, is not immune to aflatoxin fateful pangs. For example, a 2010 study titled ‘Aflatoxins in Sorghum Malt and Traditional Opaque Beer in Malawi’,   indicates that the problem is wide-spread in the country.


Researchers - Deliwe Lakudzala of the Department of Physics and Bio-chemical Sciences at the Polytechnic, a constituent College of the University of Malawi, Elenimo Khonga of the Faculty of Agriculture at Botswana College of Agriculture, Maurice Monjerezi of the Chemistry Department at Chancellor College and a researcher from Chitedze Agriculture Research Station - took part in the study. 


“Samples of sorghum grain and malt, traditional opaque sweet beverage (thobwa) and beer prepared from sorghum malts were collected from the southern region of Malawi during the humid month of January. The samples were analysed for total aflatoxins using aflatest vicam fluorometry procedure. All malt and beer samples, 15 percent and 43 percent of the sorghum and thobwa samples, respectively, were contaminated with aflatoxin,” reads the research report.



It adds: “The sorghum malt prepared for beer brewing had significantly higher total aflatoxin content than any other type of sample. The average aflatoxin content in the beer was 22.32 μg/litre (a mode of measuring toxic content in liquids), which is higher than the permissible maximum level in ready to eat foods set by Codex Alimentarius Commission (10 μg/kg). Thus consumption of opaque sorghum-based traditional beer poses a risk of aflatoxin exposure.”





Fatal laxity

 Some cancers in Malawi may therefore be as a result of exposure to aflatoxin.



That the prominence of cancer as one of the leading killers is rising is a fact that we all accept and yet we continue to look at the problem from a distance.

In spite of this knowledge, Malawi's response to the problem has
been lukewarm. Cancer awareness remains low with research
interventions into cancer being either non-existent or very little.

The Environmental Health Trust says aflatoxin is a naturally-occurring
contaminant produced by moulds, particularly Aspergillus flavus and
Aparasiticus. These moulds grow on crops, especially peanuts, maize, wheat and seed oils (i.e. cotton seed) that are stored in conditions of warmth and humidity.

It adds that aflatoxin are carcinogenic and, as such, are dangerous
to both humans and other animals and have been associated with various human health-related conditions, including the high incidents of liver cancer, growth retardation in children, reproduction impairment and immunity suppression.



Exposure to aflatoxin is known to cause both chronic and acute hepatocellular injury. 


According to the Centre for Disease Control in Kenya, acute aflatoxin
poisoning results in liver failure and death in up to 40 percent of
cases. 


What is worrying though is that knowledge and awareness about
aflatoxin is minimal in Malawi. Very few people in Malawi know that a dietary exposure to aflatoxin-contaminated groundnuts and other legume-based products - even maize - can result in all the above-listed health complications. 


Very few people know how to control aflatoxin; there is virtually  no political will to address this knowledge gap. Consequently, Malawians may be dying silently from the very same produce that is  supposed to make them proud and give them the energy and nutrients that oil life. 


In real terms, how many farmers in this country know about  aflatoxin? Do our hospitals have aflatoxin testing kits? What is the  country doing on the groundnuts and other crops that cannot be  exported due to high aflatoxin levels? Are these consumed by  unsuspecting Malawians?



Or do we have procedures of disposing off aflatoxin-infested crops? Is there any evidence or records for such dispositions?






Admarc
The Agricultural Development and Marketing Corporation  (Admarc), the country’s grain marketer established by an Act of Parliament of 1971, says it has always treated the issue of aflatoxins "with the seriousness it deserves", citing the existence of a factory and  laboratory specialising in the same at Liwonde in Machinga. 


Admarc spokesperson Agnes Ndovi says the corporation realises the  importance of meeting international standards, hence its commitment  to ensuring that consumers are not exposed to hazardous substances.


"There are international standards put in place to control the  concentration of aflatoxins and, in Malawi, these aflatoxin largely  affect groundnuts,” she explained. “To meet these standards, we established the factory and laboratory at Liwonde in Machinga, a development that has guaranteed that our groundnuts remain fit for human consumption."



Adds Ndovi: "For your own information, our export consignments have  never been turned back. This is because we work hand in hand with  the Malawi Bureau of Standards which monitors the activities at the  laboratory and factory and issues an Aflatoxin Certificate that  accompanies our groundnut exports. It is mandatory that, apart from  the other permits, consignments of groundnut exports should be
accompanied by this certificate."




Questions, no answers

  Be that as it may, it is known within research institutions that dietary exposure to aflatoxins has been one of the causes of stunted growth. Would it be fair therefore to conclude that low knowledge on aflatoxins and the impact they have can be one of the causes of the 50 percent of stunting growth rates that we have in districts such as Dedza and Mchinji where aflatoxin-laden crops like groundnuts are grown?




Silence before death


While many countries that import or grow groundnuts have put up  measures to reduce consumption of aflatoxin-infested legumes, more  especially groundnuts, Malawi is yet to say something, not even a  proposition on aflatoxin control.  


But even if we pay a blind-eye to aflatoxin research, the chilling fact is that our  trade partners are getting stricter on aflatoxin control and may eventually hit us in the long run. This may result in dwindling marketing opportunities for groundnuts as the importing countries will only import carefully-tested groundnuts.




Groundnut market

The issue of aflatoxin in the Malawi nut has already hit the groundnut market. Malawi used to send thousands of tonnes into the European market per year but the market collapsed due unacceptable levels of aflatoxin in the Malawi nut.



In 1997, the European Union set a uniform standard for aflatoxin at the minimum acceptable level of 10 ppb (parts per billion – the measurement of toxic content in nuts or grains) in groundnuts subject to further processing and at 4 ppb in groundnuts for direct human consumption.


It is, therefore, clear that - apart from the heath risk - lack of adequate investment in aflatoxin research may in the short- medium- and
long-term affect the country economically as our produce ends up
having higher levels of aflatoxin due to poor produce management.

 



Taking control
However, all these may be averted by simply putting up proper  guidelines on aflatoxin control and management. Higher knowledge  levels on aflatoxin control may improve the quality and marketability  of our legumes. 


And, from the look of things, government seems to be aware of the issue. Principal Secretary in the Ministry of Industry and Trade Alex  Gomani says issues to do with aflatoxin are handled by the Ministry  of Agriculture. And Agriculture Principal Secretary Geoffrey Luhanga says the ministry has a technical committee that deals with the issue. 


Among other efforts at international level, the US-based International Food Policy Research Institute has been urging countries to promote a sector-wide approach in addressing the issue of aflatoxin control, calling for agricultural, health, nutritional and value-chain experts’ need to work together to raise awareness of the public health impacts of consuming unsafe food. 


The institute has also been imploring governments to improve drying,  sorting and storage both on-farm and throughout the value chain;  provide training and access to equipment to change inappropriate  practices such as by facilitating access to mechanical shellers to  stop hand-shelling, among others. 


But the jury is still out on whether these efforts are enough to stem death arising from aflatoxin exposure.