As the field of PR grows
fast in the world due to its importance to the organizations, how is the
situation in Tanzania?
Some years ago there was
no Public Relation course in universities and colleges as it was just as an
option and specialized in mass communication course in some universities. But due
to the importance and need of PR specialist in organizations, five years ago this
course started to be independent as different universities and colleges started
to offer PR course in the level of
certificate, diploma and degree. This has brought the desire of many
organization to employ PR practitioners by considering their importance in
their organization.
Still there is controversial
discussion on how does this professional taken in Tanzania as many students
graduate with certificate, diploma and degrees of Public Relations while some
other company do not consider this department.
We have to think of
these issues;
·
Does the government support PR fields?
·
How about his large number of PR graduates, how
are they going to make exposure?
·
Do they need to be employed only?
·
How will the government and other institutions get benefit on making
the use of PR practitioners in their institutions?
·
What about international relation issues; don’t we think that the ministry of foreign affairs need to have PR and advertising skills so as to
have that ability of making the good image of our country?
·
What is the contribution of Public Relations Association of Tanzania (PRAT) in
advertising this field?
·
Is PRAT known to the students and other publics such as the government,
private and NGO’S?
·
Is the teaching methodology making PR students more practical and competitive
in this digital age?
·
Do the PR practitioner advertise themselves or they just wait the
government to see them?
These are the few issues
and questions that PR practitioners need to ask themselves as we are trying to
make a step a head and gat known like other professionals like accountants,
lawyers, engineers, doctors e.t.c .
There is still a challenge that public relations field is still a ‘little-understood’ and under
utilized profession in Tanzania, PR practitioner
in Tanzania we have to unite and make exposure as well as give the detailed
information on the importance of this field.
Read this article: by Erick Mchome-
Citizen News paper
IS PR taken seriously in
Tanzania?
Communication has evolved over the years in Tanzania to become one of the most
essential disciplines. It is a little surprise, therefore, that more and more
university graduates are taking public relations careers as companies seek to
boost their images in a world in which accountability to, and proper
communication with the public has become a key component of business. However,
is the work of PR professionals in Tanzania really taken seriously?
One would be forgiven for answering the question in the affirmative without any
element of doubt because at face value, all seems to be aglow in the
prestigious field of public relations: the TV appearance, the press conferences
and events. Yet experts and professionals in the communications field say
behind all the glamour and glitter that more often than not comes with their
career, PR is still grossly undervalued and massively underutilised in
Tanzania.
Grossly undervalued
Rukia Mwangungulu, a communications specialist with a government agency, says
with all the efforts that have been done to improve communication in the
country, the field of public relations is facing many challenges as it tries to
penetrate to be a culture in our society.
“It appears that PR is still undervalued and underrated as a marketing
specialty in Tanzania. Most companies, for example, do not give public
relations professionals enough space to determine the course and shape of the
firms’ interaction with the public,” she observes.
“In most cases, the problem is with the attitude of senior management, who tend
to lack trust and belief in the role of PR people – so sometimes even your
efforts to provide information to the public face stiff resistance from within
the organisation.”
In the public sector, public relations got a shot in the arm during former
President Benjamin Mkapa’s second term when he launched the Communication
Initiative to address the need for the government to tackle a potential PR
disaster. By that time, the government had read the writing on the wall: the
call for better service delivery, transparency, integrity, professionalism and
good governance had become a song for the free media and civil society.
There was heavy criticism of government from various quarters, including the
opposition. And the overnight explosion of the media coupled by and spurred on
by an urban population overwhelmed by the new free economy posed a serious
challenge. So, the idea behind the Communication Initiative was, therefore, to
proactively shape the image of government amid mounting criticism, and to
effectively justify the new policy as well as to communicate the success story
of the current administration.
Attend regular training
In the same spirit, when President Jakaya Kikwete took over power, he gave the
initiative more prominence by ordering that every ministry and government
agency employ two professional communicators to handle the public relations
portfolio. To date, heads of communication in government departments attend
regular training to hone their PR skills. But has the attitude changed for the
better?
Not much, suggests Martin Mugarula, who also works as an information officer
with a government department. “Of course, most departments have communications
units, but that is all – the PROs are there because the President gave the
order. But in reality, their work is not taken seriously,” says Martin, a mass
communications graduate.
“In most cases you find that a junior PR officer does not have a say when it
comes to decision-making on matters related to external communication – your
advice is thrown away. You want to release information to all the media houses,
for example, but your senior won’t hear about that because they want the
information given to the state media.”
The majority of PR specialists in the country are grossly underpaid, Martin
adds, earning much less that their counterparts in other African countries
where the career is more appreciated. More so, Tanzania does not have a vibrant
body of PR practitioners, that functions like the Public Relations Institute of
South Africa (Prisa), for example.
Irene Kiwia, managing director of Frontline Management, a top PR consultancy in
Dar es Salaam says she has started mobilising public relations practitioners in
Tanzania to set up the organisation.
“I believe by the end of this year we will be having it. We are planning to
bring PR experts from developed countries to share their skills with local
practitioners,” says Irene, who also decries the slow growth of the industry as
a result of lack of understanding of its scope.
Interestingly, from college and university, an increasing number of journalism
and mass communication graduates are opting for careers in public relations. At
Tumaini University, Iringa, 80 per cent of journalism students last year
preferred to major in public relations. The trend is said to be the same at St
Augustine University and University of Dar es Salaam’s School of Journalism and
Mass Communication. Gone are the days when print and electronic journalism were
the dream of many mass communication students.
And of late, many students admit to desire to follow in the footsteps of the
likes of Rukia Mtingwa of Vodacom Tanzania, former Multichoice public relations
manager Lucy Kihwele and Kelvin Twisa of Airtel, who have become regular
representatives of big companies in the media.
Despite the growing interest in the field, says Genevieve Kasanga, Kensington
Associates Ltd director, PR as a discipline is yet to be fully appreciated and
taken seriously by many influential individuals and organisations in Tanzania.
“PR is not growing fast in Tanzania because there are people in the industry
who do not know how much it helps to build the image and reputation of their
organisations,” says Genevieve, whose company offers PR consultancy and
training.
“I believe what we might need now is for the curriculum in schools and colleges
that offer PR studies to be amended in such a way that it suits the current
scenario,” adds the former corporate affairs official of Standard Chartered
(UK).
Barbara Kambogi, Multichoice Tanzania public relations manager, predicts that
despite the hurdle, the PR industry is posed for continued growth.
“I think it will grow to be as big as the marketing industry in Tanzania
because more and more organisations are realising the importance of public
relations,” she says.
Paul Brown, Chat Public Relations Agency director agrees. He says contrary to
common belief PR is key to business. “The success of any organisation can be
determined by how good its PR department is because it is the face and the
voice of the organisation,” says Brown.
Generally, many key individuals and organisations agree that PR is very
important. But while this is clear, implementation remains a challenge, experts
say.
Elsewhere, the practice of public relations is spread widely. The Public
Relations Society of America (PRSA), the world’s largest public relations
organisation, is a community of more than 21,000 well-paid professionals that
works to advance the skill set of public relations. PRSA also fosters a national
student organisation called Public Relations Student Society of America (PRSSA).
