Conférence de presse du gouvernement : Les ratés d’un exercice de communication
The government held a press conference last Friday, October 10th. But this announcement barely went unnoticed. And yet, three ministers were expected to host the conference, not to mention the new government spokesperson.
So it must have been a strong moment in terms of public communication.
However, the affair is almost a non-event. Almost all the major daily newspapers have given it a small share, apart from "Le Soleil" (naturally!) and "Walf Quotidien".
It is true that this lack of visibility may be linked to an unexpected news item: the downgrade of Senegal's rating, which stole the spotlight from all the news of the day. This news item occupied the front pages of most of the press.
But the press conference also coincided with a Lions match day. This major event had to be taken into account by the government spokesperson. By failing to analyze the national agenda, the organizers deprived the press conference of greater visibility.
And all of this points to what appears to be a lack of preparation for the conference. It seems that not all the necessary guarantees were taken before the event took place. Otherwise, how can we understand why, out of three announced ministers, only two showed up, and why one left before the end of the meeting?
Indeed, the Minister of Hydraulics and Sanitation, Cheikh Tidiane Dièye, left the meeting before the end because he had to fly to attend a ceremony he was supposed to preside over. As for the Minister of the Interior, Bamba Cissé, not only did he not show up, but no explanation was given for his absence.
Moreover, when reading the note from the Ministry of the Interior, the spokesperson began by "thanking the two ministers who agreed to come and report to the people. This is a directive that the President gave us, followed by the Prime Minister."
This passage, added to the lack of explanation, tends to suggest that Mr. Bamba Cissé did not want to comply with the exercise.
Why then put his name down if he's not up for it? Why set the conference on a day and time that doesn't suit one of the presenters who has to go on a trip?
All this shows the shortcomings that there were in this first exercise which must nevertheless be acknowledged.
Furthermore, communication objectives must be clearly defined before speaking. The press conference is not an end in itself. When a member of the government is brought in, it is not so that he or she can take stock of his or her department. We are not at the midpoint of the mandate. Of course, he or she can answer all the journalists' questions related to his or her ministry. But in his or her initial communication, he or she must have a strong message to convey. It needs to be short, clear, and concise. In other words, it is not necessary to speak for 15 to 20 minutes at the opening, as Moustapha Guirassy and Cheikh Tidiane Dièye did. This formula makes the conference last (more than 2 hours), which becomes tiresome, in addition to drowning out the key message(s).
Next, the choice of topics remains essential. The theme must be interesting and current. For example, there's little point in coming to talk about flooding and sanitation in mid-October, when the rainy season is coming to an end. Marie Rose wanted to explain the link between education, sanitation, and future social safety nets, but the truth is that sanitation is certainly an important topic, but not a current issue.
Finally, the communication took place exclusively in Wolof. Marie Rose explained the choice by the need to appropriate national languages and the importance of feeling proud to use them. But this ambition does not exclude a short summary in French. Not only does French remain the official language of Senegal despite sovereignist intentions, but it also allows for the inclusion of the foreign community and some Senegalese who do not speak Wolof.
All these points are without taking into account Marie Rose Faye's attitude, which was not very diplomatic in her approach. "She was too rigid, not very conciliatory. It was as if she was trying to impose herself," said a colleague who attended the conference.
All this to say that the idea of reporting to the people is a great initiative. But it would require rigorous work for the exercise to succeed. We dare to hope that the second one will be more accomplished in terms of casting, the choice of themes, and other aspects that go with it.
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