Six months after the launch of the India: Inside Out project, the results are in. Indian Public Diplomacy: A Strategic Future is the report produced by our team. It assesses six core areas of Indian public diplomacy, and offers four strategic recommendations for the future.
On behalf of the India: Inside Out research team, I invite your comments, questions, and feedback.
By Maya Babla
In November 2010, President Obama said on his inaugural visit to New Delhi, “India is not simply emerging, it has emerged.” In many ways, of course, this is true. India endured the economic collapse with resiliency, hovering between seven and nine percent GDP growth in 2011; it is speculated that the country has a chance at permanent-member status on the United Nations Security Council; and with its young population, India is perfectly poised on a trajectory to world leadership. On the other hand, India still lags behind on several key human development indices, ranking 134 of 187 in the most recent UN report, a challenge compounded by rapid urbanization.
For all these reasons and complexities—and a few more—India makes for a fascinating case study in public diplomacy, and in December 2011, six of my colleagues and I journeyed to New Delhi, Vishakapatnam, and Mumbai with the goal of appraising India’s public diplomacy strategy. Over the course of two weeks, we met with Indian government and civil society leaders, explored the culture, and experienced the sights, sounds, and smells of two of India’s largest cities. And along the way, we shared our conversations with people from around the world through this website. Our key deliverable will be a report that summarized our findings in six key areas: government public diplomacy, development, urbanization, citizen diplomacy, media, and Indo-Arab relations. The report will be available on this site in the coming weeks.
In approaching this project, my core question was one that required reconciliation, rather than an answer. How can India boast such high levels of economic growth, yet sustain some of the worst rates of child malnutrition, poverty, and gender inequity in the developing world? It’s a question that media coverage of India is beginning to ask: http://www.newstatesman.com/asia/2012/01/pilger-india-land-advertising”>is India’s rise as a “new world power” both true and a “false reality”? Development was a key research area for us, and yielded a clear finding: Indians are hands-on when it comes to addressing the development challenges the country faces. They are engaged and invested in their own development, and this message was palpable in our conversations with a host of NGOs, social justice activists, and graduate students. Yet these groups may not be representative of all Indians; one of our Indian interviewees proposed that Indians’ “cultural tolerance of inequality is tremendous.”
Thus, while we found that India has a robust civil society that in many ways is filling in the gaps that the government cannot due to a shortage of manpower, the Government of India could be doing much more to engage its own citizens in development, and for that matter, in public diplomacy.
By seeing a large population as an opportunity—a strength to be leveraged—India would achieve both its internal and external public diplomacy objectives. In our conversation with Anita Rajan, who is a part of the office that advises the Prime Minister on the National Council on Skill Development (NCSD), she described India as being “on the brink,” and ready to excel in the next decade, provided that India’s youth population is equipped with the right skills. NCSD uses a public-private partnership model to provide vocational training, with the goal of skilling 500 million people by 2022, and these partnerships, it became clear, are paramount in enabling large-scale change.
We found that many Indians unknowingly act as citizen diplomats; take, for example, the leadership team at Women in Security, Conflict Management and Peace (WISCOMP), an organization that trains women community leaders—from entrepreneurs to lawyers—in conflict transformation. They take on the challenging process of tough relationships like Kashmir and Pakistan: areas many people cast aside as too touchy. One aspect of their programs is facilitating dialogue between these women leaders, the military, and government bureaucrats. WISCOMP’s approach is another model that can be replicated, and the more these types of collaborations happen, the closer India comes to achieving its public diplomacy objectives.
One challenge the Government of India will face along the way is the diluted citizen trustin its activities. A recent Times of India poll found that http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2012-01-25/india/30662530_1_biggest-threat-youth-power-cities”>60% of Indians feel that corruption is the country’s biggest weakness, up nearly 20% from a Hindu Times poll conducted in February 2011. This is a critical problem because if India is perceived as corrupt on international indices as well as amongst its own people, then her credibility is damaged, and her ability to conduct public diplomacy is diminished, if not demolished. The government gets this, as evidenced by the comprehensive e-governance plan produced under the leadership of Abhishek Singh in the Ministry of Communications & Information Technology. India’s e-governance initiatives are promising on two fronts: first, the plan is accelerating the rate at which rural India becomes Internet-connected, and further accelerates the debate India must now face over Internet freedom; second, India’s expertise in e-governance creates an opportunity to share its expertise with other countries facing similar issues.
India’s relationship with the Arab world was an interesting case study for understanding the country’s foreign relations, and where public diplomacy fits in—or doesn’t. On the surface, Indo-Arab relations can be characterized as a strong business partnership. Given the many cultural and religious ties and a large Indian diaspora community in many Gulf countries, not expanding on this is a missed opportunity. But what is more promising, and more quietly pursued, is India’s engagement with countries working to re-build their governments post-revolution; here, India can offer its expertise as the world’s largest democracy, which will perhaps be more warmly welcomed than the American variety.
It became clear to us that India has much to offer the world besides its economic prowess. Indians’ work towards solving their country’s challenges is promising; the next step for India is in leveraging both the work of government and Indian civil society to do international knowledge sharing and capacity building. In doing so, India will rightly find its role in world leadership.
This piece was originally published for the USC Center on Public Diplomacy’s December 2011/January 2012 issue of PDiN Monitor.
By Anna Dawson
As mentioned in the recent article by fellow India: Inside Out teammate Aparajitha V., one of the main problems with India’s government public diplomacy efforts is the lack of manpower. Citizen efforts can have the ability and potential to meet the government’s needs. One area in particular where citizen diplomacy can have a huge impact is in India-Pakistan relations.
While in India, our team had the opportunity to meet with many groups conducting citizen diplomacy to help improve India-Pakistan relations. These groups varied in their scope of approaches from being deeply involved in conflict transformation, to not directly taking a stance on the issue at all. The following are some of the organizations we met with and their efforts in citizen diplomacy: Continue reading
Posted in Citizen Diplomacy, Public Diplomacy
Tagged citizen diplomacy, conflict resolution, india, pakistan, public diplomacy, Sesame Workshop, WISCOMP
By Hend Alhinnawi
MUMBAI – In a country that is home to 55 of the world’s billionaires, it is hard to imagine that India, like many other developing countries, faces great challenges when it comes to poverty, homelessness, and development-related issues. In a nation with an estimated population of 1.21 billion, how does one go about solving these problems? Many are tempted to point the finger at the government, and while they have a responsibility to provide basic necessities to their people, I am interested in the role of civil society in addressing development challenges.
As one official at the United States Embassy in Mumbai put it: “young Indians are acutely aware that India has become a world power, and they are also aware of its shortcomings.”
Previously, I had examined India through the United Nations lens, reading reports of UN data and looking at various UN-sponsored projects. However, through the India: Inside Out trip, I was able to see the impact ordinary people are making on international development issues in India. The government has caught on to this idea, too. Navdeep Suri, Head of the Public Diplomacy Division of the Ministry of External Affairs in India, expressed that: “one way of addressing India’s development is through creating smart partnerships between the government and civil society.”
By Aparajitha Vadlamannati
NEW DELHI – Who would think that India could have a problem with finding enough people? When you look at India, a shortage of people seems impossible. As the world’s second most populous nation, India has grown in leaps and bounds in the last 30 years with millions of skilled workers in every industry imaginable. But at home, in the government, India just doesn’t have the manpower it needs to execute effective public diplomacy.
Running a government, a working democracy, requires manpower composed of steadfast, trustworthy, knowledgeable, and concerned citizens committed to serving their fellow citizen. Unfortunately entering the civil service is impeded by the constraints of hiring policies, budget restraints, and exams and procedures with limited intake and numerous qualified candidates. Complications in the traditional route to government employment lead to public-private partnerships and concerned citizens supporting civil service action by non-profits. Continue reading
by Aparajitha Vadlamannati
Video from the PD Division on Indian history
LOS ANGELES – As a part of the mandate for public diplomacy in the Ministry of External Affairs, the Division is required to conduct activities engaging and educating Indians about government policies and Indian culture – a form of internal public diplomacy. By investing in the education of citizens, especially about national and foreign cultures, the government helps create effective citizen diplomats. For example, in the US, track II diplomacy (which relies on citizen diplomats) has worked to stave off conflicts and encourage peace talks. But these citizens could not have been useful without knowledge of their country’s interests and history, as well as knowledge of the world around them.
Globally-aware citizens make for better ambassadors and for a more active democracy. Internal public diplomacy is a tool for producing more informed citizens prepared for the challenges of globalization such as multicultural workplaces and the homogenization of cultures. Additionally, citizens that understand their own history are better able to participate in policy decisions, and by becoming more civically engaged, ensure that the external image of their nation reflects their beliefs. Creating opportunities for the Indian populace to become actively interested in their country is a critical prerequisite for them to function as citizen diplomats for India. Continue reading
By Anna Dawson
LOS ANGELES – For decades, the relationship between the governments of India and Pakistan has been characterized by mutual distrust– pursuing a devastating arms race and fomenting one crisis after another, leaving little room for strong bilateral relations. Official diplomacy between the two governments has resulted in vague resolutions with no concrete statements. While the governments have been unable to find common ground, unofficial people-to-people dialogue has emerged between Pakistanis and Indians working to promote peace and mutual understanding where the government has not. Subsequently, citizen diplomacy has gained prominence as more citizens from both countries seem more inclined to build a peaceful future than their respective governments.
Posted in Citizen Diplomacy, Public Diplomacy
Tagged citizen diplomacy, conflict resolution, india, pakistan, public diplomacy
By Maya Babla
LOS ANGELES – Sesame Workshop has 30 international co-productions with 120 other localized versions of the program. Episodes of the local Sesame Street are broadcast around the world, addressing issues ranging from religious tolerance in Pakistan to health and hygiene in Bangladesh. Sesame Workshop provides a top-notch creative model for addressing the Millennium Development Goals, and for conducting public diplomacy. But the real significance of this program is that it appropriates the power of citizen diplomacy to the youngest of the youth population.
In a country like India, with 160 million children under the age of six, this is no small feat, and it’s a unique means of empowering a new generation of citizen diplomats. Continue reading
by Mona El Hamdani
LOS ANGELES – Morocco’s geographic position enables it to be a major cross-road where different and rich cultures meet and thrive. Over the ages, it has been open to and influenced by African, Mediterranean, Middle Eastern, and European civilizations and cultures. However, the purpose of this post is not to talk about the diversity of Morocco nor about the different cultural waves that influenced this country. The purpose is more to reflect on my own personal experiences and how I got to know, interact with and learn to appreciate cultures that are foreign form my own, specifically the Indian culture.
Growing up as a young woman in Morocco, I was exposed directly and indirectly to a number of foreign cultures. Movies, television shows, music, pop culture items and languages have been among the major cultural elements that built my perception as a kid and later on as a grown up about countries and peoples beyond my country’s border. These elements have conveyed a tremendous amount of information about the other and helped shape, in a major fashion, the way I imagine and think about people I have never met and things I have never experienced. This continuous cognitive process has conveyed a number of facts about other individuals and groups, but it also unfortunately has built a block of stereotypes and prejudices.
In Morocco, I have come to 
experience India through two main elements: Bollywood movies and sari fabrics. Looking back a number of years ago, I still remember myself borrowing from one of my friends at college an Indian movie DVD called Kuch Kuch Hota Hai. At that time, and as is still the case today, watching Indian movies was a popular entertainment pastime among many Moroccans. The beautiful actors, the dynamic dances, the bright-colored dresses and the classic love stories made Indian movies a popular and amusing commodity for many Moroccans to buy, rent and exchange. Continue reading
by Aparajitha Vadlamannati
LOS ANGELES – Good public diplomats (like good teachers and good students) impart knowledge, listen, create dialogue, engage others by helping them tackle tough issues and are open to learning from the multitude of perspectives others present. They are imbued with an inclination to advance the education of all as well as their own. So what better way is there to exemplify the reach of public diplomacy than through educational exchanges?
Students can function as citizen diplomats exchanging valuable skills, sharing perspectives and collectively contribute to strengthening shared values between cultures. This year, nearly 100,000 Indian students are enrolled in American colleges (a number continuing to grow) but only 3,000 American students are studying abroad in India. The US and India clearly have much to gain by proliferating this form of public diplomacy. Though if they desire to have this system reach its full potential, there are some hurdles to be crossed. But first, let’s take a look at the bright side.
From the educational perspective, exchanges give students the opportunity to learn about international perceptions of domestic problems. When I studied abroad in India (summer 2009), Indian students were curious about President Obama’s stance on how to stave off recession and the international ramifications of potentially insular economic policy. Undoubtedly, studying abroad can promote critical and creative thinking for tackling current issues. Exchanges in a university setting also provide open forums for unbiased debate removed from external, possibly shortsighted, influences. Continue reading
Posted in Citizen Diplomacy, Public Diplomacy
