quinta-feira, 14 de abril de 2016

EU to spend €30 million to sell itself


EU to spend €30 million to sell itself
The Commission defended the campaign to provide people with a ‘better understanding’ of the EU.

By RYAN HEATH 4/14/16, 6:09 AM CET

Buried in the procurement pages of the European Commission’s website, the EU’s largest-ever communications campaign is about to take flight.

The European Commission opened bidding Thursday on a €30 million contract for “corporate communication events” which include “citizens’ dialogues, major conferences, participation in international events, fairs and exhibitions, or virtual events.” The contract would be for two years, and renewable for another two years if the Commission is satisfied with the contractor’s performance.

The effort is the centerpiece of Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker’s attempt to “achieve a better understanding by European citizens of the EU, its priorities and activities.”

When POLITICO first reported the proposed project in September, it was initially expected to be a €25.75 million campaign to “inform and engage different target groups of European citizens about the EU’s political priorities.” But the budget has since grown to €30 million.

Commission spokesperson Alexander Winterstein defended the expense Wednesday.

When the event is driven by (Commission) headquarters it’s much more difficult to fill the room. Usually no one has heard of the Commissioner and there’s no specific topic,”
“Not a single euro is committed at the signature of the contract,” because buying occurs only when “participating institutions decide to actually organize an event,” Winterstein said. “Usually, we spend considerably less that the maximum amount under these contracts. No more than two-thirds on average.”

The Commission is usually coy about its spending on communications to avoid provoking critics, particularly Euroskeptics less than two months before the U.K. referendum on EU membership.

The winning bidder would be expected to support EU organizations as diverse as the European Agency for the Operational Management of Large-Scale IT Systems in the Area of Freedom, Security and Justice (eu-LISA) to far-flung embassies.

Case studies provided to prospective bidders offer clues on what the Commission wants. One example is a “citizen’s dialogue” on migration featuring one or more EU Commissioners and 500 others in an ancient Greek theater. The contractor would be expected to provide an internet and video link to the tiny island of Lampedusa in the Mediterranean, the entry point to Europe for thousands of refugees a year, to allow people in Lampedusa to ask questions of the commissioner.

Even though the EU already has the world’s largest interpretation services, comprising 641 full-time interpreters and more than 3,000 freelance interpreters, the contractor would be expected to provide those services too.

One commission communications staffer with experience organizing “citizen’s dialogues” in the lead up to 2014 European elections said the investment can be hit and miss. “They can work well — total fireworks — if they are topic-driven, and organized locally with a lot of local people with different opinions brought into the room.”

However, the source warned that instead of improving Commission events, the top-down approach can reduce effectiveness. “When the event is driven by (Commission) headquarters it’s much more difficult to fill the room. Usually no one has heard of the Commissioner and there’s no specific topic,” the source said.

Authors:


Ryan Heath  

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