July 03, 2018

Why is the UK funding Saatchi campaign for Tunisian government?

located:	Tunisia
editor:	Shira Jeczmien

In many regards, the small north African country of Tunisia is often hailed as the only success story from the 2011 ‘Arab Spring’. While the uprising, which originated within the country and then spread to many more, has led Tunisia to navigate through the bumpy road from dictatorship to democracy, political freedom has come with a relentless economic stagnation and tax and prices increase under the government of President Beji Caid Essebsi. Raging demonstrators have taken to the streets since January to protest the stagnating economy and appalling living conditions, and as a means of injecting an enhanced political awareness and support of the government, the U.K. has just announced it will fund the international PR tycoon M&C Saatchi as it takes on campaigns for the Tunisian government.

“I can think of no better example of the cynicism of this government than financing a PR campaign to support cuts to the Tunisian state by using state money in Britain that it claims is promoting peace and security overseas.” Said Labour MP on a committee of the parliament’s Department of International Development, Lloyd Russell-Moyle. Adding that “The government won’t tell the public or parliament what this fund, which is worth over £1 billion, is spent on and the little evidence we do have suggested that the rot runs deep.”

The money funding the mammoth campaign is coming from a reportedly illusive Conflict, Security and Stability Fund (CSSF), which was set up by the Foreign Office and the Department of International Development.

According to the contracting documents, M&C Saatchi – who has been previously active in producing campaigns for the U.K.’s Conservative party – will be behind a campaign “targeted towards the Tunisian public”, addressing a public audience of 18 to 35 years old. As reported by The Guardian, the campaign’s imperatives are set to, supposedly, “improve public awareness of the government’s role in planning and delivering economic reforms.”

There are many aspects to this controversial PR campaign that should be urgently and desperately made transparent. Although the U.K. Foreign Office has been increasingly public about the campaign’s parameters, adding that M&C Saatchi will not be providing their services directly to the Tunisian government, but strictly to its Cabinet Office.

In response to the funding's growing scrutiny since its announcement, a U.K. government spokesperson said that “In Tunisia, CSSF programmes strengthen democratic governance, security and economic reform. This project supports the Tunisian civil service to transparently communicate with citizens, with initial results showing an 18% increase in the number of citizens that want to learn about economic issues and reforms.”

In an earlier statement, Tunisia’s Head of State, Youssef Chahed, said that his government is working hard to attend to the concerns raised by protesters and to revive the country’s economy. Whether this can be done with the help of an international PR company ran by a media giant funded by an external government, such as the U.K., is certainly up for debate.