The Public Affairs unit of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) on Tuesday held a one-day social media training for its officers.
The training, which was declared open by the General Manager Public Affairs, Captain Iheanacho Ebubeogu, held at Rockview Hotel Apapa.
Ebubeogu, who charged the Public Affairs officers on the need to be abreast with modern communication techniques, said the social media provides a veritable platform to effectively communicate with the public with the advantage of securing quick feedback
He said, “A key trend in Public Relations is that information is becoming more easily available as internet based technology means that it can be searched more efficiently and people can interact with it.
“The developments in communications technology are fuelling a globalization which is demanding more information more quickly and more often .The digital media have made most public relations global and force organization to think globally about public relations.
“The communications world is dramatically moving in a digital direction and those who understand this transformation will communicate much more effectively than those who do not.”
Ebubeogu further said that since public relations practitioners are in the business of communicating with publics, they must therefore understand the ongoing transformation in order to communicate effectively
“When many people think of social media, they think of Facebook and Twitter. However, social media do not just include social networking sites, but also blogs, forums, message boards, photo sharing, podcasts, RSS (really simple syndication), search engine. Marketing, video sharing, Wikis, social networks, professional networks, and micro‐blogging sites.
“The training today will open our minds to the mileage these social media tools can reach but as a public organization like ours, I will also request for a robust discussion on how to curb the side effects of this important communication method.
“Arriving at a social media policy for the organization will be a guide for its integration into our several means of commutation,” he said.
The training was facilitated by Ships & Ports Communication Limited.
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