STRATEGY FOR COMMUNICATING EUROPEAN INTEGRATION IN UKRAINE Draft 1. BACKGROUND........................................................................................................................................ 2 2. FUNDAMENTAL PROVISIONS OF THE STRATEGY.................................................................... 5 3. STRATEGY GOAL AND OBJECTIVES ............................................................................................... 6 4. KEY SUBJECTS OF IMPLEMENTATION OF THE STRATEGY ................................................... 8 5. IMPLEMENTATION OF THE TASKS OF THE STRATEGY. SPECIFIC IMPLEMENTATION WAYS................................................................................................................ 11 6. MONITORING OF STRATEGY IMPLEMENTATION RESULTS ............................................... 15 7. ORGANIZATIONAL MODEL OF STRATEGY IMPLEMENTATION ........................................... 15 8. TERMS OF STRATEGY IMPLEMENTATION................................................................................ 17 9. PROGRAM FUNDING ......................................................................................................................... 18
1.
BACKGROUND EU-Ukraine Association Agreement signed in March 2014 started a new
chapter in cooperation between Ukraine and the EU. The Agreement is aimed at gradual convergence of Ukraine and the EU, forming the framework necessary for a political dialogue in all spheres, creation of conditions for strengthening economic and trade relations that would lead to gradual integration of Ukraine in the internal EU market, intensification of collaboration in the fields of justice, liberty, and security in order to ensure the rule of law and respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms. All of this will make Ukraine more efficient, attractive for investments, and better prepared for next stages of integration with the European Union. At the same time, the magnitude of the process, its universal nature and impact on the life of every citizen necessitate a comprehensive awareness and communication campaign in Ukraine. Because, despite the undeniable striving of Ukrainians to return into the European family of nations (demonstrated by the Revolution of Dignity that started with the attempt of the then authorities to bereave Ukrainians of their European future), this striving is often not supported with unbiased information about Europe, the European Union, and the consequences of implementation of the Agreement. Therefore, the goal of the Strategy is to explain the objectives of the European integration of Ukraine for the broad population, provide the necessary information about the opportunities and prospects opened for Ukraine and Ukrainians by the EU-Ukraine Association Agreement (and other documents and fields of cooperation between the EU and Ukraine). This educational work is directly connected with further communicating the goals of the European integration of Ukraine, and its end result will be conscious (in terms of both values and practical reasons) striving of Ukrainians to join the European Union as the historica
l civilization mission of Ukraine. Despite the fact that the strategy of Ukraine’s joining the EU has been clearly set on the level of regulatory legal acts, the process itself, as well as its effects for Ukrainian citizens often remains not very well understood, and so the whole process meets mixed response from various groups. This issue is particularly pressing on the regional and local levels, where the view of the European integration as a purely external process that has no relation to internal transformations of the country and ordinary citizens is still dominating. Besides, Russian television and Russian media do spare no effort to distort the common perception of the goals and consequences of Ukraine’s movement toward the European Union, and, regretfully, they often succeed. Ukraine has already several times attempted to resolve the problem of informing/communicating the subject of European integration to the citizens. The strategy for Ukraine’s integration in the European Union adopted back in 1998 mentioned the need to hold a large-scale nationwide information and outreach campaign in order to facilitate Ukraine’s integration in the EU, providing access to European legal, bibliographic, etc. data bases, and some other measures. In the period from 2004 to 2011, two State Programs for Informing the Wide Public on the Issues of European Integration of Ukraine were functioning. Unfortunately, neither succeeded in accomplishing their tasks due to scarce funding, lack of clear and adequate system of monitoring the efficiency of implementation, lack of interaction between the government and the civil society, excessive
focus
on
the
strategies
of
“informing”
people
“communicating” with them. But the most important thing
instead
of
was that these
programs paid very little attention to the regional and local levels. In 2013, the current Concept for Implementation of State Policy for Informing and Establishing Public Communications on Pressing Issues in Europea
n Integration of Ukraine until 2017 was adopted. However, this program is defacto not implemented — to a large measure because of the events of 2014-2015 and general reduction of funding of state programs. Thus, the problem of winning conscious popular support of European integration in Ukraine has long remained unresolved. Besides, which is particularly important, a significant disbalance in awareness raising work can be observed on the regional level. Without resolution of this problem, without Ukrainians’ understanding the real price and benefits of European integration, without engaging them already at this stage in the European scientific, cultural, informational domains, one can expect decline in popular support of the process and people’s disappointment at the stage of finalizing formal procedures of Ukraine’s joining the EU (or establishing a new status of relations between Ukraine and the EU). The scope and complexity of the task, the number of stakeholders in the process, negative experience of authorities to resolve this issue all demand forming a completely new comprehensive and clear Strategy for communicating Ukraine's European integration (hereinafter referred to as the Strategy). The Strategy shall be built on the new principles of interaction of governmental and private sector and shall be aimed at establishing clear and transparent rules for this process, as well as setting goals of the informing suitable in the circumstances. Full-scale implementation of the Strategy will enable winning a truly conscious and deep value-based support of European integration processes by Ukrainians, thus ensuring the required support of the strategic goal of Ukraine — Ukraine’s joining the European Union. Obviously, implementation of the goals of the project would require employing resources (organizational, financial) available in the public and private sector, as well as donor structures. One of the key mechanisms of implementation of the Strategy is the close coordina
tion inside the quadrangle “Ukrainian authorities — international partners — civil society — media”. This coordination will enable filling the gaps in communicating European integration and making the communication more consistent.
2.
FUNDAMENTAL PROVISIONS OF THE STRATEGY 2.1.
The Strategy (and its Implementation Plan) is a component of state
information policy that will be implemented according to key provisions of the Law of Ukraine “On the Foundations of Domestic and Foreign Policy of Ukraine”. 2.2.
The Strategy is based on employment of two main approaches to
information and communication support of the process of European integrationrelated awareness campaign: -
direct informing certain target audiences and the society as a
whole, as the target group; -
communicative interaction between the Government and
public mediators. 2.3.
The goals of the Strategy shall be implemented through cohesive and
close collaboration between ministries and agencies, Parliament, local authorities, public mediators, businesses, and political forces. 2.4.
The Government shall order the programs aimed at implementation of
the Strategy. At the same time, the Government may act as the executive party in cases where it can and should conduct awareness raising events on its own initiative. 2.5. the
Information created for the purpose of implementation of the goals of
Strategy shall be: -
accessible (including its special marking to indicate its topic and
reliability); -
clear (oriented at the needs, interests, and cognitive abilities of
specific target groups); -
broad (it shall cover maximum topics, but still be meaningful
and detailed); -
appeal to the needs and interests of a citizen (i. e., it shall be
linked to the life of citizens and communities, using specific and understandable examples as much as possible). 2.6.
Effectiveness of implementation of the Strategy shall be determined
through regular monitoring of public opinion (sociological studies) that needs to be performed throughout the whole period of Strategy implementation using a uniform methodological approach. 2.7.
Despite the fact that the Strategy targets Ukrainian population , the
need of taking steps to promote Ukraine in the EU should be taken into account. This requires creating a relevant program for promoting Ukraine abroad.
3.
STRATEGY GOAL AND OBJECTIVES 3.1.
The key goal of Strategy implementation consists in promoting
conscious support of Ukraine’s eventual membership in the European Union in Ukrainian society (and its key target groups), of Ukraine's integration into the European economic, cultural and political area, as well as implementation of internal reforms and transformations towards more free, just, democratic, successful and transparent society, based upon principles of fundamental rights and
freedoms, human dignity, government accountability, market economy and openness. 3.2.
Key objectives of the Strategy in terms of implementation of tasks of
informing the Ukrainian society about the goals and effects of the EU-Ukraine Association Agreement are: 1. Preparing the society to Ukraine’s future membership in the EU and ensuring conscious support of the process by the citizens of Ukraine. 2. Explanation of the specifics of the process of European integration and its effects on the life of the citizens (especially on the regional and local levels). Promoting understanding of European integration among Ukrainian citizens as primarily a process of internal reforms and changes in Ukraine. 3. Explaining key provisions of the EU-Ukraine Association Agreement, Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Agreement between Ukraine and the EU, as well as other integration developments between EU and Ukraine as an element of Ukraine's internal reforms and preparation for Ukraine's eventual EU membership. 4.
Setting up effective collaboration between the Government and key
public mediators. Such mediator structures include, first of all: -
NGOs;
-
media;
-
education, science, and expert professionals;
-
knowledge dissemination institutions (libraries, archives, clubs,
centers) capable of increasing public awareness of European integration. 3.3.
An important part of the Strategy is the clear definition of target
audience (TA) to be reached for the purpose of implementation of the goals of the Strategy.
Every TA will require targeted messages, specific information channels, and custom communication formats. In the context of implementation of the goals of the Strategy, TA shall be classified according to the following parameters: - age (children, teenagers, youth, adults, parents, senior citizens); - region (geographic location); - education (school-children, college students, people with higher education, secondary education, primary education); - economic sector (science, education, healthcare, small or medium business, banking, industry, agriculture); - socio-economic indicators (income, living conditions); - influence on public opinion; - influence on Ukraine's EU integration developments. It would be reasonable to conduct a baseline research to differentiate communication with every TA depending on the initial attitude toward the issue of European integration: - supporters (people who strongly believe in the benefits of the process); - neutrals or skeptics; - opponents (people who do not believe in the European vector and positive effects of the Association Agreement). Therefore, articulating effective messages to the society as a whole will require clear understanding of the TAs and their attitude toward European integration.
4.
KEY SUBJECTS OF IMPLEMENTATION OF THE STRATEGY
One of the key ideas forming the basis of the current strategy is setting up a collabora
tion quadrangle involving key stakeholders of communication of European integration in Ukraine, namely: Ukrainian authorities (first of all, Government), international partners, civil society organizations, and media. 4.1.
Civil society organizations become key partners of the Government in
the context of implementation of the goals of the Strategy. This cooperation may run as: -
consultations concerning Strategy implementation mechanisms;
-
involving
civil
society
organizations
in
shaping
the
communication agenda; harmonization of communication efforts of key civil society organizations with communication activities of Government; -
synergy (when possible) of communication actions of civil
society organizations and the Government on the issues of EU integration communication in Ukraine. -
providing grants to NGOs (or facilitating receiving such grants
from foreign donors) for achievement of the goals of the Strategy; 4.2.
Considering the significance of mass media in dissemination of
information and ideas across the population, the media will play a special part in the process of achievement of the goals of the Strategy. For the purpose of raising awareness of the population and key target groups with regard to European integration, Government shall collaborate with private and public mass media (conventional and electronic) both on the national and, especially, regional (local) levels. The latter is especially important due to observed differentiation of opinions regarding European integration of Ukraine in different regions of the country. When dealing with the issue of communication of the European integration agenda, Government and media shall consider that information about this process is crucial
for Ukrainian society because the European integration process will shape the life and future of every citizen. 4.3.
In order to achieve the goals of the Strategy, Government shall take the
following steps supporting mass media in coverage of the issues of European integration: -
financial
support
(based
on
transparent
mechanisms
supervised by civil society) of production of content (television, printed, electronic) aimed at informing the society within the scope of the Strategy (such products shall be marked appropriately); -
systemic preparation and free distribution of information kits
concerning Government’s efforts for European integration among target audiences (primarily journalists); -
organization of educational events (workshops, trainings, etc.)
on European integration and general EU-related issues for journalists; -
assisting journalists in obtaining information about the EU from
European structures and officials; -
facilitation of journalists’ access to government-organized events
immediately linked to the issues of European integration. 4.4.
International partners of Ukraine, including donor organizations, will
be the key subject in implementation of the Strategy — both in shaping its content and funding the implementation. As international donors are already working very actively on communication of European integration in Ukraine, this Strategy suggests creating a joint coordination platform to ensure cumulative effect of these projects, distribution of activities, and avoiding duplication.
5.
IMPLEMENTATION OF THE TASKS OF THE STRATEGY. SPECIFIC
IMPLEMENTATION WAYS 5.1.
Government shall coordinate and order activities meeting the purpose
of the Strategy, but it shall be primarily public mediator structures that shall execute such activities (except when it directly stems from the tasks and goals of Government). 5.2.
Activity of the Government in terms of implementation of activities
aimed at reaching the goals of the Strategy shall be primarily focused on: -
publishing government documents concerning the process of
integration with the EU and implementation of EU-Ukraine Association Agreement. -
activity of information resources of all ministries and
institutions taking part in the integration process; development of governmental Internet resources (websites, social media) dedicated to the subject of European integration; -
active formal and informal interaction with the media in order
to explain Government’s activities concerning implementation of the Agreement, primarily: 1) holding regular off-record briefings concerning the progress of European integration for representatives of target media and NGOs by key Government officials (in particular, line Vice Prime Minister, line deputy ministers); 2) maintaining a source of regular information flow that would accumulate data on Government’s activities using the “single window” principle (“you will find all you need to know here");
3) reports on European integration progress; 4) maintaining high activity in both intellectual/niche media and mass media (talk shows); cooperating with civil sector partners to produce other explanatory and motivational products for mass audience (videos, infographic, videographic, communication events, etc.); 5) ensuring proactive approach to information and using newsworthy events to draw the attention of local and regional media to the European integration subject. -
Involvement of Ukrainian representatives of key target
audiences in training on the issues of European integration, namely: collaboration with key NGOs and experts organizing trainings and seminars for key target audiences in order to improve the quality of training and ensure representation of Government’s position and participation of its experts. 5.3. Effective implementation of the Strategy requires setting clear, understood,
and transparent
terms of involvement of NGOs and mass media in
implementation of projects aimed at reaching the goals of the Strategy, as well as robust long-term mechanisms to fund such involvement. The first mechanism is state’s use of the system of electronic public procurement for the purposes : it will enable employing a more open and transparent method of distribution of budget funds for informational projects implemented to raise public awareness of European integration. This mechanism involves priority use of the funds of state budget and local budgets. The second mechanism is assigning funds as a part of implementation of national target programs (in particular, the National Target Program for Informing the Public on the Issues of European Integration of Ukraine) focusing on minimiz
ation of involvement of public institutions as immediate producers of the content through more active and complete involvement of third parties meeting the criteria listed herein. The third mechanism involves creating a joint network of leading donor structures operating in Ukraine and interested in reaching the goals of the Strategy. The goal of creating such a structure is to coordinate the efforts of donors aimed at supporting European integration projects and distribution of key activities. This will enable better and more efficient distribution of existing resources. Whatever funding mechanism is used, the single set of requirements shall be established for project selection: For non-governmental organizations: -
project’s alignment with the goals of the Strategy;
-
terms (project implementation schedule);
-
project cost (calculation of funds required to reach the goals of
the project); -
NGO’s experience in implementation of similar projects;
-
analysis of previous experience (positive or negative) of
implementation of similar initiatives in Ukraine; -
experience of the personnel (availability of qualified and
experienced staff); -
accent on work with regional audiences.
For media (both commercial media and media in public ownership are eligible for the competition; the priority projects shall be the ones aimed at regional and local audiences): -
project’s alignment with the goals of the Strategy;
-
terms (project implementation schedule);
-
project cost (calculation of funds required to reach the goals of
the project); -
experience in implementation of similar projects;
-
experience of the personnel (availability of qualified and
experienced staff); -
mass media coverage (for electronic media — the number of
viewers or listeners, for the press — the number of copies printed, for webmedia — the number of visitors); -
broadcasting time for electronic media;
-
information stakeholders have about the media and their
activities in the field of European integration (it is important to use the experience of Ukrainian media NGOs in this sector, particularly the experience of cooperation with regional media). 5.4. To effectively achieve the goals of the Strategy, a list of key topics to be
further covered using different informational tools for different target audiences shall be formed. These key topics shall be the priority ones in terms of providing funds based on any of the above funding mechanisms. Such topics shall include: 1) Successful local practice in transformation of the society and its progress toward the European life standards and practices. 2) Pro-European reforms in Ukraine: explanation and analysis
3) Success stories of Ukrainian businesses, science, culture, civil initiatives in Europe and the world. 4) European education and its accessibility and importance for Ukrainians. 5) Engaging the international community in resolution of Ukrainian problems. 6) Reports or interviews on daily community practices in EU countries.
5.5. Besides the key topics to be highlighted based on competitive selection
and receipt of small grants, there is a number of projects of long-term importance for reaching the goals of the Strategy. These include: 1. Creating a network/database of national experts in all the spheres of European integration. 2. Creating a network of regional experts capable of providing comments on European integration. 3. Competitions for journalists. 4. Stronger accent on networking of professional business associations or topical business institutions (business associations, chambers of commerce, etc.) with regional media. 5. Audit of cooperation between regions and the EU and its member states.
Development of a database on cooperation for each region.
6.
MONITORING OF STRATEGY IMPLEMENTATION RESULTS 6.1. The main form of control over effectiveness of reaching the goals of the
Strategy is conducting comprehensive sociologic surveys. 6.2. The surveys shall use a single methodic basis, but the executing entities shall be selected in open competition. 6.3. At the beginning of implementation of the Strategy, a baseline
sociological survey shall be conducted (according to the criteria listed in the Implementation Plan), and afterwards such surveys shall be conducted on the annual basis.
7.
ORGANIZATIONAL MODEL OF STRATEGY IMPLEMENTATION 7.1. Practical implementation of the Strategy on behalf of Government shall
be performed by Governmental Office for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration,
a structure authorized to support European integration-related activities of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine, as well as by Prime Minister of Ukraine, and Vice Prime Minister of Ukraine for European and Euro-Atlantic integration. 7.2. General coordination and control over implementation of the Strategy
shall be performed by Vice Prime Minister for European and Euro-Atlantic integration of Ukraine. 7.3. Governmental Office for European and Euro-Atlantic integration is
responsible for practical implementation of the Stragegy. 7.4. Vice-Prime Minister for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration,
Governmental Office for European and Euro-Atlantic integration, as well as deputy ministers (at respective ministries) for European integration are key communicators from the governmental side. 7.5. The mechanism for Strategy implementation includes the following
steps: 1.
A Concept for State Programme for communicating European and Euro-Atlantic integration is developed based on this Strategy. The Concept becomes the basis for the State Programme for communicating European and Euro-Atlantic integration in Ukraine.
2.
A Coordination Council is set up within the proposed "cooperation quadrangle" to implement the Strategy. The Coordination Council includes: a) Representatives of the Government (Vice-Prime Minister for European and Euro-Atlantic integration and representatives of his/her office;
Governmental
Office
for
European
and
Euro-Atlantic
integration; deputy ministers responsible for European integration at their respective ministries.
b) Representatives of international organizations, diplomatic services (EU Delegation, embassies of EU member states, embassies of other international partners of Ukraine), foundations, donour organizations; c) Representatives
of
Ukrainian
non-governmental
organizations
working in the fields of European and Euro-Atlantic integration; d) Representatives of key Ukrainian media actively working on the issues of European and Euro-Atlantic integration; 3.
Vice Prime Minister for European and Euro-Atlantic integration is the chair of the Coordination Council. Director of the Governmental office for European and Euro-Atlantic integration is the Council's secretary.
4.
Coordination Council meets once in three months to coordinate actions of key stakeholders, find synergy, define priorities of communication, avoid duplication of efforts
5.
Every six months the Vice Prime Minister for European and EuroAtlantic integration reports about implementation of the Strategy at the sitting of Ukraine's Cabinet of Ministers;
6.
Implementation of the Strategy is analysed at the end of each year. Based on this analysis, an Annual Plan is developed for the next years, together with its indicative budget, which includes parts to be financed by the Ukrainian State Budget and international partners.
8.
TERMS OF STRATEGY IMPLEMENTATION 8.1. The main part of Strategy implementation is planned for 5 years. 8.2. The term of Strategy implementation may be adjusted following the
results of sociological surveys used for monitoring of effectiveness of Strategy implementation.
8.3. The Strategy forms the basis for the Action Plan, clear and transparent for the public and setting initial, intermediate, and final milestones of Strategy implementation.
9.
PROGRAM FUNDING 9.1. The activities envisaged in the Strategy shall be funded by state budget
and international donors, as well as other legal sources.
IMPLEMENTATION PLAN OF THE STRATEGY FOR COMMUNICATING EUROPEAN INTEGRATION IN UKRAINE Draft
1. GENERAL PROVISIONS ..................................................................................................................... 20 2. TARGET AUDIENCES ......................................................................................................................... 20 3. IMPLEMENTATION OF THE TASKS OF THE STRATEGY. SPECIFIC IMPLEMENTATION WAYS................................................................................................................ 22 4. PRACTICAL MEASURES TO ENSURE FUNDING IN ORDER TO REACH THE GOALS OF THE STRATEGY ............................................................................................................................. 28 5. MECHANISMS FOR INVOLVING MEDIA IN REACHING THE GOALS OF THE STRATEGY ............................................................................................................................................. 31 6. KEY TOPICS AND THEIR MAIN COMPONENTS, THE COVERAGE OF WHICH WOULD CONTRIBUTE DIRECTLY TO REACHING THE GOALS OF THE STRATEGY..... 31 7. PROJECTS OF LONG-TERM IMPORTANCE FOR REACHING THE GOALS OF THE STRATEGY ............................................................................................................................................. 36 8. SOME ISSUES OF ORGANIZATION OF CONTROL OVER IMPLEMENTATION OF PROVISIONS OF THE STRATEGY ................................................................................................... 40
1.
GENERAL PROVISIONS 1.1.
This Implementation Plan (hereinafter referred to as the IP) is the roadmap for public authorities charged with implementation of the Strategy
for
Communicating
European
Integration
in
Ukraine
(hereinafter referred to as the Strategy). 1.2.
The IP is an integral part of the Strategy and shall form the basis for preparing specific Activity Plans, Action Plans, or other documents developed by governmental bodies responsible for implementation of the Strategy.
1.3.
The purpose of the IP is to particularize certain provisions of the Strategy, suggest practical mechanisms of implementation and provide significant recommendations on realization/implementation of certain provisions of the Strategy.
1.4.
Such particularization concerns the issue of determining key audiences of the Strategy, specific actions to be taken by Government to achieve the goals of the Strategy, issues of ensuring funding the achievement of the goals of the Strategy, mechanisms for engaging media and NGOs, specification of key subjects and main components thereof, as well as projects having long-term importance for achievement of the goals of the Strategy.
2.
TARGET AUDIENCES It is important to direct the communication at key target audiences and
stakeholders, because it is they who may later become the advocates of processes of European integration in the society. The priority TAs for the purpose of achievement the goals of the Strategy (and thus funding the activities aimed at achievement of the goals of the Strategy) are:
- Wide audience of Ukraine's citizens; - representatives of civil society and NGOs, activists, and volunteers - representatives of small and medium businesses (explaining the rules of conducting business in the EU and changes of the rules of conducting business in Ukraine due to implementation of the Association Agreement, familiarization with risks and opportunities of the European market) - journalists of national periodicals - journalists of regional periodicals - scientists (opportunities provided by EU programs for scientific exchange and “Horizon 2020”) - creative professionals (opportunities provided by EU programs in this field, such as “Creative Europe”) - public servants and representative of local authorities - members of political parties - members of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, as well as oblast, city, and raion councils - school-children of 9-12th grades (familiarization with the essence of the EU, opportunities for further education provided by the EU, main values of the EU) - students of higher level institutions of all accreditation levels (further education, job prospects); - representatives
of
foreign
diplomatic
community
and
international organizations working in Ukraine. The list of priority TAs is not exhaustive for the purpose of the Strategy, it only
forms the basis for shaping specific awareness raising programs. Obviously, in specific cases, the Strategy shall approach determination of TAs on a more ad-hoc basis in order to keep up with the dynamic changes in the European integration agenda and to adapt to possible problems in implementation of the Association Agreement. 3.
IMPLEMENTATION OF THE TASKS OF THE STRATEGY. SPECIFIC
IMPLEMENTATION WAYS Actions of Government may and should be itemized per specific components of its activities aimed at achieving the goals of the Strategy. As regards the task of “publishing government documents concerning the process of integration with the EU and implementation of EU-Ukraine Association Agreement”, regular reports shall be published on the progress in performing the Association Agreement and related reforms aimed at European integration. However, publishing the reports is not the only type of governmental communication. An important element of the communication is explaining the context, purpose, and dynamics of certain steps. That is why one of the key genres of communication are brief and clear awareness-raising materials providing the best understanding of the situation in the specific sphere of European integration. These materials shall comply with the media communication standards: a) they shall be written in a simple language clear to the lay public; b) they shall use simple short sentences; c) they shall explain the logics behind the actions (what the end goal is); d) they shall have catchy titles (e. g., “Visa-free Regime: 5 Rights the Citizens of Ukraine Have” or “Why Does Ukrainian Economy Need the Law on X?”, or “Free Trade with the EU: 5 Things a Ukrainian Business Needs to Know”, etc.).
Implementers from the Government side: Governmental Office for European and Euro-Atlantic integration; deputy ministers responsible for European integration at their respective ministries. With regard to the task “active formal and informal interaction with the media in order to explain Government’s activities concerning implementation of the Agreement”, there is a number of practically significant actions requiring itemization and continuous performance/use: 1. “holding regular off-record briefings concerning the progress of European integration for representatives of target media and NGOs by key Government officials (in particular, line Vice Prime Minister)”. Regular off-record briefings for (a) journalists working on the topic of European integration; (b) organizations performing educational and awarenessraising work (experts, trainers, etc.). The briefings shall be held on a monthly basis. The purpose of the briefings is to (a) clarify where the country is in the process of the reforms, what bottlenecks exist, why are reforms done this way and not another; (b) establish feedback with journalists and non-governmental organizations in order to switch from unilateral “informing” to multilateral “communicating”. The objective of the briefings is to collaborate with stakeholders on joint shaping of informational agenda. These briefings shall involve journalists/experts that would further actively broadcast
this
knowledge
in
their
work
(media
materials,
advocacy,
communication in the regions). This way, a network of knowledge “multipliers” will be gradually created. Topic-specific briefings shall also be held (e. g., concerning key topics of the European integration agenda in the agrarian sector) involving key governmental officials
working in this sphere (e. g., representatives of the Ministry of Agrarian Policy and Food, or State Service on Food Safety and Consumer Protection) that would allow clarifying the way European integration-related subject is developing in specific sectors. The key communicators in these industry-specific spheres shall be line deputy ministers for European integration of respective ministries. They shall also hold off-record briefings with key journalists/experts in this sphere. The briefings shall be held bimonthly. In case of urgent newsworthy events (shortly before important meetings, summits, signed documents, etc.), the briefings shall be held more frequently. This format is intended to maintain feedback with the media and civil society, keeping them well aware of the course of events. Implementers from the Government side: Governmental Office for European and Euro-Atlantic integration; deputy ministers responsible for European integration at their respective ministries. 2. “maintaining a source of regular information flow that would accumulate data on Government’s activities using the “single window” principle (“you will find all you need to know here")”. In the current information circumstances, such a source shall be a website of the Governmental Office for European and Euro-Atlantic integration, and its pages in social media (Facebook, Twitter). The objective is to maintain the resource that will become a kind of “encyclopedia” of news for journalists and civil society defining Government’s perspective of European integration. A journalist working on the topic will be able to easily grasp the context of the recent events by reviewing recent posts. Implementers from the Government side: Governmental Office for European and
Euro-Atlantic integration. 3. “reports on European integration progress” Reports about the progress on the road to European integration, primarily about implementation of the Association Agreement, are important, first and foremost, as a source for further information product for the media or civil society organizations. And that is why it is important that it was created in a way to enable its further life in information environment. Reports will not only reflect Government’s steps in fulfillment of the Association Agreement, they will also explain the logic behind specific steps, the general perspective, why these steps are taken, and what their end goal is. To increase the effectiveness of their further “life” in the information environment of the society, the reports shall contain: a)
Executive summary (1-2 pages) presenting the highlights and
conclusions; b)
Explanation of the logics behind the process (e. g.: why is the
particular bill proposed, why is the law adopted, what effects will it bring about, what is the full picture?); c)
Evaluation of the progress (e. g.: is adoption of the law good or bad?
How good or how bad? What else has to be done to achieve certain goal?); d)
Analysis of processes, and not just events;
e) Demonstration of the way these steps may benefit the life of citizens in the short- and long-term run. Implementers from the Government side: Governmental Office for European and Euro-Atlantic integration. 4. “maintaining high activity in both intellectual/niche media and mass media”
A) For the social groups receiving information from the Internet, it is impossible to practice “communication through explanation”. It can be best done using such a media genre as “explainer”. Nowadays, people do not lack information, but they lack full information. They also lack information that would provide explanation and enable them to better understand the issue. That is why the format of explainer is becoming very important: it is a piece of data combining information from different sources presented as “key blocks”, “lists” (such as “Visa-free Regime: 10 Things to Know”, “Food Safety: 15 Things that Change”, etc.). It is Government that has the key competence in these issues. These materials may be published on the website of the Governmental office for European and Euro-Atlantic integration, as well as in collaboration with the key online-media. Implementers from the Government side: Governmental Office for European and Euro-Atlantic integration. B) It is also crucial to reach the mass audience. In this aspect, key part should be played by the Vice Prime Minister for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration as a political figure. Communication plans of the Vice Prime Minister shall include regular participation in major national talk shows. It is very important to thoroughly prepare the speaker and main messages that would be clear for the gross audience watching the talk show. The messages shall be as simple as possible and clear for lay public. Features of a successful message: 1) Simplicity and clarity for a regular citizen 2) Emotional appeal / listener’s readiness to identify with it 3) Appealing to the end practical usefulness for the citizen
Implementers from the Government side: Vice Prime Minister for European and Euro-Atlantic integration. 4) 5. “ensuring proactive approach to information and using newsworthy events to draw the attention of local and regional media to the European integration subject.� To draw the attention of local and regional media to the subject of European integration, local newsworthy events shall regularly be created. In this context, two ways are of priority: A) Closer cooperation with local authorities, involving them in shaping local agenda. It is an important activity because regional/local journalists often respond to the information that goes specifically from local authorities. For example, they often subscribe to newsletters of local authorities, and so this newsletter may help them to better keep track of events and find newsworthy events related to the subject of European integration more effectively. For this purpose, the Office of Vice Prime Minister through Governmental office shall establish connections with press offices of oblast state administrations and local authorities for more active dissemination of information and creation of newsworthy events. Implementers from the Government side: Governmental Office for European and Euro-Atlantic integration in cooperation with press service of regional state administration and local self-government bodies. B)
establishing
connections
with the networks
NGOs/experts on the local level through a media newsletter.
of
pro-European
Presently, at least in some regions, NGOs capable of playing activist and expert part in furthering European integration agenda in their respective regions are gradually developing. Such organizations shall be one of the key partners of the campaign of communicating the subject of European integration in Ukraine. Since media respond, first of all, to newsworthy events, increasing the number of the latter and improving their quality may also encourage local media to turn more readily to the subject of European integration. As regards “involvement of Ukrainian citizens (first of all, representatives of key target audiences) in training on the issues of European integration�: 1) cooperate with key NGOs and experts organizing trainings and workshops for key target populations, primarily representatives of media, public servants, business, and youth. 2) Delegate experts/officials of the Government to similar training sessions in Kyiv and other regions. 3) Develop and implement a program of training local officials on 4) local/regional specifics of implementation of European integration of
Ukraine. 4.
PRACTICAL MEASURES TO ENSURE FUNDING IN ORDER TO REACH THE
GOALS OF THE STRATEGY The mechanism of use of the electronic public procurement system involves using an already existing mechanism (such as ProZorro system) to place the orders of authorized public authorities for conducting awareness-raising campaigns (individual activities) aimed at reaching the goals of the Strategy. The second mechanism envisages using the capacity of the National Target Program for Informing the Public on the Issues of European Integration of Ukraine. This program has not been extended for the next period due to, inter alia, existing
limitations regarding development of such documents. At the same time, the usage of this mechanism itself needs to change drastically. Public authorities shall stop performing the non-characteristic functions of producers of “creative content” and transfer these processes to professionals, first of all — to the ones from the civil sector and media. In such circumstances, the state is the customer and metacontroller, it shall shape only the strategic objectives. Existing regulations on national target programs allow using this tool in a very flexible manner to create long-term projects, which cannot be done using an electronic procurement system. At the same time, as is for all the other funding mechanisms, there shall be a clear and transparent mechanism for: A) selection of the parties to perform the projects B) criteria of acceptance of the results This will enable avoiding mutual accusations in “inefficient work” of both public authorities and non-governmental structures. The third mechanism involves large-scale attraction of donor aid and optimization and coordination through Governmental office of existing projects already being implemented using the donor funds. It is obvious that donor aid at the first stages of Strategy implementation will be one of the main sources for funding various projects. At the same time, the state may not further expect that such projects will be funded using donor funds only. Therefore, a 3-stage shift to a normal system of funding European integration awareness-raising/communication projects is proposed: 1. Stage 1 (1st year of implementation) — pilot projects of individual public authorities using ProZorro mechanism and full-fledged financing through the donor funding mechanism (the ratio of public and donor funding of the projects shall be 10/90) 2. Stage 2 (2nd and 3rd year of implementation) — launch of the National T
arget Program for Informing the Public on the Issues of European Integration of Ukraine (based on provisions of the Strategy), as well as pilot projects within its scope; switching some of donor-funded projects to state-budget funding; evaluation of effectiveness of use of the ProZorro mechanism for European integration awareness-raising/communication and continuing its use by all public authorities (if the experience is considered positive). The ratio of public and donor funding of the projects shall be 30/70. 3. Stage 3 (4th and 5th year of implementation) — the National Target Program for Informing the Public on the Issues of European Integration of Ukraine shall be launched in full scope, ProZorro mechanisms shall be used on the regular basis, and donor aid shall be used to finance largescale or complex projects. The ratio of public and donor funding of the projects shall be 50/50. It seems dubious that even in the next 5 years budget capacities of Ukraine allow financing projects of this kind with state budget funds only. However, this goal shall at all time remain a strategic priority for public authorities engaged in European integration awareness-raising/communication shall. The Strategy and the Implementation Plan form a roadmap of future projects/initiatives/activities of communicating European integration to fill in existing information gaps. This roadmap may become a foundation for coordination work of donors regarding financial support of European integrationrelated communication. Forming such a network is extremely important in the setting where projects initiated by NGOs or donor are often duplicated and aimed at resolving the same issues while ignoring some other problems. A system of grants is developed (and approved by the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine)
for the purpose of financing such projects. The purpose of these grants for NGOs is two-fold: (a) to enable target projects on communicating European integration in the regions; (b) to establish strong activist and expert centers on the local and regional levels to further European agenda and the subject of industry-specific internal reforms. 5.
MECHANISMS FOR INVOLVING MEDIA IN REACHING THE GOALS OF THE
STRATEGY The main form of media involvement is the use of small grant system. It enables increasing substantially the quantity and quality of the subject-related materials. Besides, it allows for a better presentation of activity of the media and serves as an effective feedback channel between social reality and the authorities. The grants do not require significant spending, they avoid intermediaries and go straight to specific media or journalists working on this subject. It is another method of encouraging media to develop the subject of European integration and internal reforms more and deeper. The mechanism of grant provision can be dual: either supporting a cycle of publications of a certain media, or establishing a system of remuneration to support individual publications. As noted above, presently, there is no such mechanism, and it demands formalization (and, correspondingly, taking into account during budget planning).
6.
KEY TOPICS AND THEIR MAIN COMPONENTS, THE COVERAGE OF
WHICH WOULD CONTRIBUTE DIRECTLY TO REACHING THE GOALS OF THE STRATEGY The Strategy lists topics that shall be funded on the priority basis to promote faster and more reliable achievement of its goals. The list of topics forms the core of the strategy, but is not exhaustive. The topics shall be popularized as follows: 1. Successful local practice in progress of the society toward the E
uropean life standards and practices - energy efficiency — conducting energy audit, house insulation, boiler upgrade, utility network modernization, switching to bio-fuels, reduction of community’s or city’s dependence on external energy resources. - transparency of authorities — local initiatives on improving the transparency of authorities, such as establishing modern platforms for public procurement, implementation of “open budget” and “participatory budget" initiatives; community initiatives on the use of new information access channels such as open registries, open financial information (edata, etc.), using the experience of existing civil initiatives on monitoring the activities of the authorities. - decentralization — experience of community associations, financial independence, resolving community problems on the local level (schools, roads, utilities, waste management, etc.) - local development — the experience of successful communities (in particular, participants of the projects having received donor support), demonstration of such communities as examples of self-organization and fundraising, thus encouraging other communities to replicate their experience, - food safety – how the food safety control reform implemented according to EU practices improves the food safety control in Ukraine; - environment – how the sustainable development, renewable energy and environmental policy provisions of the EU-Ukraine Association Agreement (and beyond) improve the environmental situation in Ukraine; - rule of law and justice – how the judiciary reform, prosecutor office reform and anti-corruption policies are implemented on the local level. 2. Pro-European reforms in Ukraine: explanation and analysis
Encouraging publication of media materials concerning the impact of nationwide reforms on the regional level, on different areas of people’s lives with a special accent on effects of the reforms on daily practices of the citizens of Ukraine. Implementation of the Strategy involves explaining what the reforms change for people using the principle of “it was like this — it will be like that”. The publications shall also provide explanation of the goals of the reforms, their logics, so that the subject is not lost in the flow of information. Also, it is very important to produce materials that include approximate forecasts for the period of 10 to 15 years: what will the country be like after the reforms are completed? The main messages concerning key reformed areas shall be as follows: - Energy efficiency: European integration is building an energy-independent country, energy-independent community, and clean environment - Decentralization: European integration is building a society where decision-making is moved as close as possible to the people affected by the decisions - Reform of judiciary: European integration is building a society where judges are free from both political pressure and corruption - Transparency of authorities: European integration is building a society where ordinary people can control the activities of the authorities, particularly spending - Free trade: European integration opens international markets to Ukraine. The European market is a window to other global markets Demonopolization: European integration opens much more room for successful competition in different sectors of economy - Safety: European integration will set higher food safety standards to protect life and health of the citizens.
3. Success stories of Ukrainian businesses, science, culture, civil initiatives in Europe and the world. One of the tasks of the Strategy is to provide regular success stories of Ukrainian citizens, companies, initiatives in different areas for Ukrainian information space. Creation of such a “success library” will usher the start of the chain of changes, when one success story encourages people to try and replicate it. For example, sub-topics of media materials about the business that would be supported under this Strategy may be as follows: - an account of success stories of Ukrainian businesses in the EU - disclosure of different business models of entering European/international markets - analysis of the main obstacles (requirements of European certification, the needs to find partners and funding, the need to ensure required volumes and terms, etc.) and ways of overcoming them - providing positive stories from neighbor regions the local business can look up to - presentation of the “mandatory list” of things a business striving to get international needs - regular and easy presentation of statistical data, primarily comparative statistical data. In particular, working with regional statistics and comparison of Ukrainian statistics with the statistics of the EU - working with the stories of “regional champions”, i. e. companies, projects, and initiatives of the region that become well-known in Europe, export their products, ideas, knowledge - Encouraging media materials about the products with high added value to dismiss the stereotype of Ukraine’s exporting only raw materials. - Explanation of different aspects of the certification problem.
- Success stories of niche products and projects. 4. European education and its accessibility and importance for Ukrainians The topic of youth and education shall play a very important part in the media campaign. It is the young people who are the main disseminators of values. It is the generation increasingly following the principle “Study in Europe and return” that is capable of transforming the country. Moreover, young people having studied in Europe are the source of knowledge about Europe. Because they saw everything themselves. These topics will be promoted in the format of reports and interviews with young people having studied in Europe about pros and contras of studying abroad, as well as positives and negatives of life in the countries they have visited. 5. Engaging the international community in resolution of Ukrainian problems The materials on international support and international projects will dismiss the stereotype of Europe’s being only “deeply concerned” about the situation in Ukraine and not doing anything to help. 6. Reports or interviews on daily lives of citizens of the EU Reports or interviews concerning specific practices of lives of citizens of the EU in various spheres: utilities, energy, energy efficiency, social protection, education, etc. These are life stories always popular among readers/listeners.
7.
PROJECTS OF LONG-TERM IMPORTANCE FOR REACHING THE GOALS OF
THE STRATEGY Implementation of the projects of long-term importance for reaching the goals of the Strategy necessitates their itemization to improve specific implementation: A) Creating a network/database of national experts in all the spheres of European integration. Lack of access to information on experts is one of the key problems the journalists (both national and, especially, regional) often mention. Simultaneously with step-by-step creation of the network of regional experts, the Strategy envisages accumulation of databases of already known experts
in
different
areas
of
European
integration-related
reforms:
decentralization, energy efficiency, trade, small and medium business, education, transparency, fighting corruption, etc. The opportunities for education and self-perfection of the experts shall also be provided. Access to the database may be provided to central and regional journalists working on European subjects. The experts shall be included in this database subject to their prior consent and readiness to answer journalists’ requests. The database shall be created based on contributions from experts of leading analytical centers of Ukraine, leading scientific and research institutions, journalists, topical business associations, business consultants, graduates of European educational programs, etc. An important tool is identifying in this database a core of experts for continuous tutoring, i. e. for work on replies to requests from national and regional media. It is this work with local/regional media that is in high demand on the local level.
B) Creating a network of regional experts capable of providing comments on European integration. Creating such a network of experts may be based on (a) the network of NGOs and activist movements cooperating with international organizations, (b) graduates of educational initiatives, particularly those focused on the subject of European integration, (c) pilot network of experts of Team Europe of the EU Delegation in Ukraine, (d) experts of Ukrainian analytical centers, etc. This item is especially important due to the fact that local medial most often lack local expertise, i. e. people capable of explaining European integration on local and regional examples, including success stories, problems, and specifics of the region. Building up a network of such experts and analytical centers will enable “localizing” European topics, projecting them on the local situation, and explaining them to local target groups — first of all, to media. Comprehensive training of such local experts requires sustainability grants for local NGOs. An important prerequisite to engaging NGOs in implementation of the projects under the Strategy is making the activities of these organizations to go beyond traditional “conferences” and “round tables” and aim at creation of specific communication events (such as establishing mobile awareness-raising platforms in the central streets of the cities and delivering the main messages of reforms in a simple language) or specific information products (infographic, explainers, motivators, etc.). One of the key tasks of such a network will be preparing explanatory notes form these experts for local media concerning pressing issues of national and local progress of European integration-related reforms. Some of such materials may be prepared in collaboration with the media, and some as the content open for publishing to different media based on the copyrigh
ts-free principle. C) Competitions for journalists. Competitions for journalists are an important incentive for media. There are few such competitions dedicated to the subject of European integration, and they are usually held by non-governmental organizations. This Strategy envisages holding the competitions concerning the subject of European integration more frequently and providing financial incentives for winners. Authors of cycles of topical publications will have the preference over authors of individual publications. The Strategy provides for development of a national schedule of competitions that shall be dedicated to the Journalist’s Day, the Day of Europe, various international days, so that at least 3 to 4 prizes a year are awarded. D) Networking of professional business associations or topical business institutions (business associations, chambers of commerce, etc.) with regional media. Creating a network of professional business organizations is important, first of all, for holding regular media events concerning the agenda of European integration. For example, in an agrarian region, networking may involve agribusinesses and media. It will make it much easier for local media to find success stories of local businesses in the context of European integration. E) Audit of cooperation between regions and the EU and its member states. Development of a database on cooperation for each region. Creation of databases and visualization of such a cooperation shall be responsi
bility of the expert network founded according to item B). The purpose is to show how international projects are implemented at the regional level (programs for cross-border cooperation, local development, energy efficiency); what economic sectors interact the most with the European market; what business projects/companies are the most successful; what universities are in partnerships with European universities, and what Ukrainian students are/have been studying at European universities, etc. Creating such a map (overview of regional Europeanization) will enable journalists to find topics for their publications more easily. F) awareness-raising and motivational video materials for gross audience An important genre of communication with gross audience is creating awareness-raising and motivational videos that would encourage citizens to change their behaviors according to European values. Under this Strategy, similar videos will be created to highlight key areas of daily life of the citizens where European practices and values can be incorporated, including energy efficiency, waste management, solidarity with the others, rejecting corruption, respecting public space, respecting private property, respecting dignity of other people, politeness, non-discrimination, etc. The objective of the videos is to motivate people to adopt European values in their own lives and encourage other people to do the same. The videos shall be produced in partnership with the leading NGOs working in the sphere of European integration and multimedia production studios; these videos shall be proposed for broadcasting to major national channels and disseminated in social media and other internet platforms. The key task of the awareness-raising videos is to provide maximum explanati
on of European integration-related changes using practical examples. The key task of the motivational videos is to encourage the citizens of Ukraine to change their own behaviors toward the European practices, i. e. more free, united, and responsible (before other people and environment) society. The key messages are “Start with yourself”, “Change yourself, change the world”, “Europe starts with you”, "Europe provides new opportunities for everyone". 8.
SOME ISSUES OF ORGANIZATION OF CONTROL OVER IMPLEMENTATION
OF PROVISIONS OF THE STRATEGY The problem of many of the adopted governmental documents (incl. different strategies) is the rather low quality of implementation and formalism in reporting from authorized structures. Considering it, this Implementation Plan suggests steps aimed at ensuring effective and transparent control over implementation of the Strategy for both Government and society. The key powers as regards to practical part of implementation of the Strategy (preparation of the general Plan of Activities for governmental institutions, development of proposals for amending regulatory legal documents to realize the goals of the Strategy more effectively, prompt cooperation between Government and non-governmental organizations as parties of the Strategy, preparation of applications for projects aimed at achievement of the goals of the Strategy) shall be assigned to the Government Office for European and EuroAtlantic Integration. Strategic control and overall governmental coordination of efforts to implement the Strategy and achieve its goals shall be the responsibility of Vice Prime Minister for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration of Ukraine. This strategic control would be best carried out through activities of the Government Committ
ee for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration, International Cooperation and Regional Development. This Committee: - every 2 months after adoption of the Strategy, shall consider reports on the current progress of Strategy implementation and arising challenges; - every 3 months, shall hold joint meetings of members of the Government Committee and representatives of the NGOs involved in implementation of the Strategy. To arrange for routine control of strategic processes at the level of Vice Prime Minister for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration, it would be reasonable to develop a form to be used for submission of monthly reports from ministries and agencies immediately involved in implementation of European integration projects (incl. the ones not directly related to objectives of the Strategy) concerning: - progress of implementation of existing projects directly linked to the issues of European integration or the Association Agreement; - estimates of the terms of implementation of the projects; - problems arising out of implementation of projects and steps taken to resolve them. The process of implementation of the Strategy shall be monitored by both Government and NGOs. Government shall monthly report on achievement of the goals of the Strategy, and the NGOS shall prepare such prepare such a report.