The race to reskill foreign services: eavesdropping, food security and climate

25 April 2024 | The 14th edition of The Apolitical View by Apolitical CEO and Co-Founder Robyn Scott. Subcribe to the newsletter

In this week's edition:

• Why governments are investing so much in diplomatic skills
• Apolitical co-hosting with the World Bank
• When e-government is too efficient

Facing escalating conflicts, multi-polarity and interdependencies, foreign services are remaking themselves. Headlines that focus on hard military power overshadow quieter but important changes in how governments are approaching diplomacy. Without good diplomacy, governments narrow their options and restrict possibilities with big implications for containing or preventing conflicts, building alliances and advocating for greater global stability.

Almost all the biggest challenges facing governments today require international cooperation on an unprecedented scale. Climate change, pandemics, inequality, migration and the impact of new technology all transcend borders. These issues demand foreign policy frameworks that prioritise collaboration over confrontation, and an updated set of skills to implement them. As one example, last week we co-hosted an event at the European Parliament on building the AI-ready government, along with Eva Maydell, a Member of the European Parliament (MEP) and global AI policy leader. A key idea to come out of the event was the need to move from AI nationalism to alliances, working to seize the opportunities of AI and manage its downsides.

Geopolitics is playing out in the race for diplomatic reach. The 2024 Global Diplomacy Index by the Lowy Institute shows China narrowly leads with the most diplomatic posts (274), just ahead of the United States (271). But it may surprise readers to see who comes in third. Türkiye has significantly invested in its diplomatic presence, rising to third place this year, up from fifth in 2023 — one of the world’s fastest-growing diplomatic networks. India also rose to 11th place (from 12th in 2023). Interestingly, of India’s 11 new posts since 2021, eight of them have been in Africa.

Skills are a critical ingredient. Public servants working in foreign policy now need a strong grasp of both traditional and emerging domains. Governments are rapidly investing in a new generation of diplomats who are not only adept in negotiation and trade but are confident in navigating the newly multipolar geopolitical landscape, buffeted by today’s big challenges. Earlier this week, I was talking to a diplomat in an embassy based in London who told me that diplomatic staff urgently need training in the basics of AI, which has rapidly become a hot topic across bilateral and multilateral conversations and relationships.

Governments are ramping up investment in their foreign policy capability. In its federal budget announcement last week, Canada allocated C$61.4 million over five years to strengthen recruitment and training for its foreign service. The UK’s Foreign and Commonwealth Development Office (FCDO) has implemented training programmes ranging from climate change and biodiversity, to preventing data loss and eavesdropping. France’s plans to modernise its diplomatic corps are ambitious. In order to build an adaptable foreign service that can address challenges that will “define the 21st century like climate change and food security”. France is introducing structural changes, pushing to extend diplomatic relationships beyond just elites, and making significant investments into training – including compulsory climate training for senior government leaders as profiled in our latest Global Insights report. The US’s Foreign Service Institute has also been working to build technical, regional and linguistic expertise for American diplomats.

Speaking of AI training – I’m delighted to share that our new course, powered by content from Stanford Online, is now open for pre-registration: AI Fundamentals for Public Servants: Opportunities, Risks and Strategies.

I’m also proud to announce that Apolitical will be co-hosting the World Bank’s 2024 Public Administration Global Forum, from May 28-29 in Washington, D.C. The theme is ‘Transforming Governments for a Livable Planet’, and the event will address critical themes such as digital transformation, climate action and the need to hire and retain global talent in government.

Robyn Scott

Apolitical CEO & Co-Founder

My recommendations

One for our African, Latin American and EU readers especially — if you’re looking for inspiring global examples of AI being used in government, our report with Microsoft’s Public Sector Center of Expertise on how public servants are using generative AI to reimagine delivery has now been published in French, Portuguese and Spanish.

And finally...

At Apolitical we’re digital government enthusiasts. But can e-services ever be too efficient and accessible? This week, a UK High Court ruling upheld a couple’s erroneous divorce. While using a relatively new online divorce portal from the UK’s Courts and Tribunals Service, their appointed lawyer selected the couple's name on a dropdown menu by mistake, and the divorce was finalised 20 minutes later.

Got thoughts, feedback or ideas for what you'd like to see in this newsletter? Send them directly to me or leave a comment below.