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Well
over a hundred diplomats from 35 nations are alumni of the Foreign
Service Institute (FSI) in New Delhi. Among them are countries as
diverse as Laos and Lithuania, Mauritius and Mongolia, South Africa
and Slovakia, Kyrghyzstan and Eritrea, Moldova and Myanmar. These
diplomats serve today in their respective foreign offices or represent
their countries elsewhere, and rank all the way from Attache to
Ambassador. Some of them received their training at FSI side by
side with diplomatic trainees of the Indian Foreign Service. Most,
however, have been trained in the highly concentrated and specially
designed "Professional Courses for Foreign Diplomats" (PCFD's).
Foreign
diplomat-trainees began to be integrated in courses for Indian diplomats
some years ago. By 1992, however, requests to FSI from other developing
countries for training facilities had mushroomed to the point where
it was no longer possible to accommodate the numbers in existing
courses. Exclusive Professional Courses for Foreign Diplomats were
then designed. Such PCFD's are now a standard feature of FSI's regular
activities, and they continue to be heavily demand-driven. The demand
led to FSI initiating two courses each year instead of just one.
Five PCFD's have taken place in less than three years since the
first exclusive course for foreign diplomats in August 92. PCFD
V, concluded last December, had 18 diplomat-trainees from as many
countries from Africa, Asia, Eastern Europe and the European and
Central Asian states of the Former Soviet Union.
Considerations
of quality of the courses (and limitations of capacity in FSI) usually
permit the admission of a fraction of the applicants sponsored by
their respective governments. FSI's response has been to limit the
number of trainees from each country, rather than limit the number
of participating countries. This helps maintain a multi-national
flavour to the courses, in itself a desirable aspect of modern diplomatic
training. An important parameter in selection has also been the
need for such training, the priority being for countries with minimal
or no training facilities of their own. The idea of "exchange" diplomat-trainees,
while always an excellent goodwill building exercise between countries,
has been essentially put on hold because of increasing demands from
countries for which such training is much more of a necessity. And
that necessity in turn has been fueled in recent years by such factors
as the emergence of new countries in the former Soviet Union and
the triumph of a multi-racial South Africa.
Requests
for training have often been at the personal behest of a foreign
minister or other high ranking dignitary. And the "thank you" letters
and notes which often follow afterwards have been a heartening experience
for FSI staff (even after due allowance is made for the customary
"diplomatic discount" in the exuberance of the language used).
As
in the case of India's own diplomat-trainees, course modules for
PCFD's encompass all essential elements of diplomatic training.
The important difference, of course, is that PCFD's are global in
their approach and accent rather than India-specific - as India's
own courses would be. The subjects in PCFD's range, as they must,
from the intellectual and the esoteric on the one hand to the routine
and the mundane on the other. But all relevant to the daily matters
that a diplomat has to attend to in a mission abroad. Included are
modules with a global orientation on core subjects such as international
political and economic relations, national security, foreign trade,
diplomatic practice and protocol, international law, the United
Nations family of organizations, international and regional inter-governmental
organizations or groupings, multilateral diplomacy and external
publicity. Others include aspects of administration, consular work,
crisis management, inter-personal communication skills, representational
work and familiarity with computer work. While good knowledge of
the English language is a pre-requisite for admission, a one-week
intensive course in special English is available in FSI's language
laboratory just before the start of the course for those who request
it. And that does happen in a number of cases in each course.
Obviously,
not all that is taught and discussed in the courses would apply
in equal measure to trainees from every country. Diverse regional
organizations such as ASEAN, SAARC, SADCC, EU or ECLAC, for example,
would obviously have differing degrees of importance for diplomat-trainees
from Vietnam, Myanmar, South Africa, Uzbekistan or Moldova. But
trainees are exhorted at the outset to take this into account, and
to intelligently adapt what is discussed to their own specific country
circumstances. Given the diversity of countries represented, class
discussions inevitably bring into focus a wealth of aspects on a
given issue, adding an important dimension to training.
Delhi
offers an exceptional variety of intellectual and professional talent
which is readily available to FSI. Like other urban centres in the
developing world, the population of India's capital city has exploded,
with increasing industrialization and development, to around 10
million today. But numbers hardly tell the full story. As the seat
of Government of a sixth of the human race, several hundred representatives
of the people, each freely elected by well over a million people
on the average, reside there for much of the year, and India's Constitutional
bodies in the capital provide a fascinating insight into how the
world's largest democracy is governed. As an increasingly important
commercial and industrial centre in India, interactions are available
with captains of India's rapidly expanding industry with growing
multinational ramifications. Many of them have high international
profiles, having held top positions in international business organizations.
The vibrant and lively independent press in India provides a refreshing
insight into the manner in which the freedom of the press can be
put to good effect in a developing country. At the same time, when
inter-acting with a newspaper editor, for example, trainees are
encouraged to probe such aspects as the point where freedom of the
press might degenerate into abuse of the freedom of speech, and
whether and how the fourth estate does - or does not - monitor itself.
Discussions are provocative and remarkably open. People's organizations
and NGO's of international repute in India buttress official efforts
at development in virtually every field - and challenge official
policies where they feel the governmental line needs to be corrected.
These are also drawn upon by FSI. Last but not least, among those
available for training programs and other inter-actions are intellectuals
from numerous think-tanks, as also world class talent in universities
and specialized centres of learning.
Not
surprisingly, then, the FSI is uniquely positioned to dynamically
structure its training modules and interactions to suit the needs
of special groups of trainees, keeping in mind each time the rapidly
changing global challenges that need to be addressed.
As
in any course with a practical orientation, PCFD's are not confined
to classroom inter-actions. The trainees will, for example, typically
visit India's Parliament when in session, witness the presentation
of credentials of an Ambassador, spend a morning at a newspaper
office and have discussions with chambers of commerce.
Highly
concentrated and relatively brief courses have some obvious limitations.
For one thing, they do not permit too much time for leisure. But
the course is designed in a manner that combines visits to centres
of excellence in other parts of the country, such as those in management
or industry, with some diversion of tourist interest in places such
as Bangalore (India's "Silicon Valley") and the sea resort area
of Goa.
No
outside funding has been sought for the courses at the FSI, and
PCFD's are excellent as examples of a successful amd self-sustained
TCDC effort. By manoeuvring available resources, both human and
material, FSI has been able to provide - or arrange - practically
free accommodation in Delhi's "Institutional Area" and in the city's
Foreign Students' Hostel. There is no pretence to luxury, but the
rooms are clean and the space and accompanying facilities are adequate.
By net-working with a large number of sister Institutions in different
fields in Delhi - which have spare capacity from time to time between
their own courses - the accommodation is virtually free of cost.
The trainees are provided with a stipend of the equivalent of just
under $200 per month, which is also adequate for meals and out of
pocket expenses at their places of stay. The financial outlay, therefore,
is minimal.
As
mentioned earlier, foreign trainees were not always placed in exclusive
courses at FSI. When FSI first began to receive requests from foreign
countries to help train their diplomats, a few were added to the
group of India's own trainee-diplomats. To maintain quality, however,
such courses could be no larger than 20-25. Since the Indian Foreign
Service Probationers (as fresh Indian entrants are called, before
they take over as Third Secretaries a year later) already number
12-15 each year, there were obvious limitations of numbers of foreign
trainees that could be accommodated. Also, since many of the courses
for the Probationers were India-specific, and not necessarily of
professional interest to foreign diplomat-trainees, there was an
obvious qualitative limitation to existing courses as a training
exercise for foreigners - as distinct from an exercise in international
goodwill alone. The attempt, for the duration of the joint course,
therefore, was to have modules of a global (rather than India-specific)
relevance. The camaraderie and goodwill - and in some cases abiding
friendships - built up between diplomats of different countries
was heart-warming. It was in a sense unfortunate, therefore, that
increasing demand from abroad could only be met by exclusive courses
for foreign diplomats. Nevertheless, modules for PCFD's are still
designed in a manner that permits at least a few inter-actions in
common with their Indian counter-parts, notably with speakers of
eminence in their respective fields such as environment or the press.
FSI
is well established as a training institution for the needs of the
Indian Foreign Service. Several courses are held each year for hundreds
of trainees of different categories, ranging from refresher courses
for Indian Ambassadors and Consuls General and Commercial Counsellors
in missions abroad to courses for fresh entrants to the Indian Foreign
Service, spouses of diplomatic officers, officers concerned with
protocol in state governments in India and non-diplomatic staff
members proceeding abroad. The Institute is headed by one of the
four Secretaries in the Indian Ministry of External Affairs, an
officer of the highest career Ambassadorial rank. He or she is assisted
in turn by several officers, two of them of the rank of Ambassador.
Happily,
FSI is permitted a good deal of freedom in arranging its courses
and modules, and that facilitates the incorporation of innovative
concepts and ideas from one course to the next. Trainees in PCFD's
are encouraged not to confine their remarks and suggestions to merely
those that are complimentary to FSI, and constructive criticism
from many of them has helped improve course content and methods.
Additionally, continuing interactions of FSI faculty with related
centres of excellence, and with individual intellectuals in diverse
fields in India and abroad, help towards an open academic orientation,
even as FSI pursues practical training goals training for a target
group.
FSI
has been located for several years now in the former Akbar Hotel
(now Akbar Bhavan), in the heart of Delhi's posh diplomatic enclave.
While the several halls and other facilities such as the computer
training centre and the state of the art language laboratory are
conducive to excellent training programs, there is no substitute
for the FSI to have its own premises. This is now under way, and
construction is expected to begin in the middle of this year. The
equivalent of $ 6 million has been budgeted for construction, not
counting the land which has been allocated by the Indian Government.
Aside from the most modern facilities for training, FSI in its new
premises will have adequate accommodation for the stay of trainees
and staff on campus, as well as in-house recreational facilities
such as tennis courts and a swimming pool.
Wars
often follow the failure of diplomacy. This century is replete with
reminders that, despite the advance of "civilization" and "modernization",
avoidable human suffering emanates all too often from a lack of
understanding among nations and peoples. Relatively recent flash-points
in Eastern Europe and the heart of Africa, for example, and ethnic
and fundamentalist resurgence in many parts of the world are sad
reminders of the re-tribalization of the human race. Billions have
been spent in this century to prosecute wars; to destroy, to kill
and to maim. Additional billions have been spent in national and
international efforts to clear up the debris of human conflict and
for peace keeping. Suggestions have surfaced that the world should
also use its resources for "preventive peace making". If efforts
to that end achieve even a semblance of success, they would help
mitigate the enormity of human suffering and tragedy that history,
and this century in particular, have witnessed. To foster better
understanding among peoples - and especially the diplomats who represent
them - will be an important element of any such effort.
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