The Sunday News
Ngqwele Dube, Sports Correspondent
GWERU emerges tops in the communications and public relations sphere during the Covid-19 period according to a local research unit.
Gweru came out tops in seven categories in the Award of Excellence on Information dissemination on service delivery by local authorities’ Communications and Public Relations officers/practitioners during the Covid-19 period.
The awards are organised by the Leadership Institute of Research and Development.
Gweru City Council’s communications and public relations officer’s Vimbai Chingwaramusee scooped the Best performing Local Authority PR Practitioner award while coming out tops in sections that included, Website, twitter, Facebook page, Newsletter, WhatsApp and Mainstream media.
In a press release, the LIRD said GCC’s website and social media pages contains content that is useful to residents and stakeholders and are updated regularly while Chingwaramusee is occasionally on radio/TV and in newspapers updating Gweru City Council residents and stakeholders on issues to do with service delivery.
LIRD executive director, Robert Mandeya said they came up with the award as local authorities are vital in the fight against COVID-19 due to the fact they provide essential services.
“The Leadership Institute of Research and Development has since the onset of the COVID-19 outbreak in Zimbabwe been monitoring how our local authorities are playing a role in the fight against the virus which has put the World to a standstill.
Local authorities are vital in the fight against COVID-19 as they are the providers of essential services. As a result, the Institute has been assessing the prioritisation of communication and interaction between the local authorities, residents and other key stakeholders,” he said.
In coming up with the winner, the Institute looked at the platforms that the PR officers are using to communicate on issues regarding service delivery.
Mandeya said they looked at how effective these platforms are being utilised and how innovative the communicators have been since the onset of the COVID-19.
“We realized that most PR practitioners at all local authorities are utilising both digital and traditional media platforms in communicating with residents and other key publics on issues to do with service delivery. But we also realised that some PR officers are using these tools more effectively than others,” he said.
The inaugural award has been awarded on the basis of the findings by teams around the country that have been monitoring and assessing the PR practitioners’ performances since March 2020.
