Daniel Braun, Official representative of the Konrad Adenauer Foundation as well as Marion Walsmann, Member of the European Parliament, addressed the participants via video link.
In his welcoming address, the Official representative of the Konrad Adenauer Foundation emphasized that "Parliament is a legislative house. MPs work for all Macedonian citizens. That is why it is important that every MP, of course guided by his own political convictions, advocates for the good of everyone. We, as the Konrad Adenauer Foundation, are particularly grateful to discuss all these aspects with the MPs of VMRO-DPMNE, because we believe that even for the quite experienced parliamentarians, this initiative represents an excellent opportunity to advance the work of the MPs and their engagement in the Parliament”.
During her welcome address, Marion Walsmann, a Member of the European Parliament, emphasized that 2024 is the most important election year in our time and the future will be decided this year not only by the elections in the USA and India, but also by the elections in the country and in the European Union. She added that "The success of the European Christian Democratic parties rests on our cooperation and the values we share. With our unity and determination we could achieve a lot. That is why I am firmly convinced that, if we join forces with further cooperation with VMRO-DMPNE, we will be able to move a lot..."
The President of VMRO-DPMNE, Hristijan Mickoski, also addressed the participants and stressed the importance of transparent and open and accountable communication with the citizens, during the campaign, but also after assuming the responsibility to lead the country. Mickoski recognized the cooperation with KAS, noting that this cooperation will continue also in the future.
The coordinator of the parliamentary group of VMRO-DPMNE in the Parliament, Nikola Micevski, and the Secretary for international cooperation, Stefan Andonovski, also gave their opening remarks. The speakers focused on the importance of direct communication with citizens, as well as the use of all communication tools available to political activists. Additionally, in his presentation, Micevski spoke about the new Rules of Procedure of the Assembly, as well as about the work and functioning of the MPs in the Parliament. According to him, with the new Rules of Procedure there will be predictability of all parliamentary processes.
The second day started with panel discussion with Gjorgia Sajkoski, Secretary General of VMRO-DPMNE, Vice-Presidents of VMRO-DPMNE Aleksandar Nikoloski, Gordana Dimitrieska Kochoska, Vlado Misajloski and Timco Mucunski on topics related to the role of MPs in communication and cooperation within the framework of the electoral units.
Naum Stoilkovski, Spokesperson of VMRO-DPMNE and a long-time journalist, in an interactive discussion covered the issue of key communication messages, preparation and delivery of an effective and efficient message, the importance of the message, as well as the correct communication of policies in public.
Furthermore, the long-time journalist and editor Slavica Arsova, through workshops, involved the participants in systematic preparation and holding of a press conference, a successful approach in an interview and preparation for a public debate.
The last day of the training seminar focused on communication through social media. Digital media expert, Stojce Stamenkovski spoke about proper self-presentation in the digital space, who addressed the digital media section, analysing and presenting the channels, strategies and approach of these new media.
In the part of concluding observations of the training, Davor Pasoski from KAS and Stefan Andonovski, Secretary for international cooperation of VMRO-DPMNE joined the discussions. This part included a discussion with the MPs regarding the needs and priorities in the upcoming period.
The three-day event addressed topics such as the role of the MPs in effective communication with citizens, communication and cooperation with the local branches within electoral units and efficient models of public relations, ethics in communication, relations with the media, social media and their use for efficient communication with different target groups, as well as strategic positioning.
