ABU DHABI // Between uploading photos and chatting with friends, internet users can now use Facebook to comment on Urban Planning Council (UPC) initiatives.
The government agency this week launched a Facebook page and a contest called My Sustainable Abu Dhabi, also on Facebook, and decorated its Twitter account with a background celebrating the UAE's 40th anniversary.
There are plans to unveil an online platform early next year called Citypulse, for residents to learn about and contribute to urban planning in the capital, said Fouad Kassem, the public affairs and media relations manager for the UPC.
"What we would like is to really get communities involved," said Mr Kassem, who manages the agency's social media efforts. "We want a dialogue."
Government and social media are not obvious bedfellows. But when the UPC created a Twitter account in April, it joined numerous state-run entities that are trying to reach out to the growing population of social media users.
"Social media is like an instant evaluation report," said Salem Khamis Al Shair, the director general of Emirates eGovernment, a federal online initiative.
Ideally, Facebook and Twitter will allow the UPC to communicate in "real time", sharing information and receiving feedback from planners, developers, students and residents, Mr Kassem said.
"It's really up to us to pick up the pace and go to their level," he said.
The task will not be easy, said Fadi Salem, the programme director of the Dubai School of Government's governance and innovation programme. Though "the benefits are huge" for governments that thrive on social media platforms, few succeed, he said.
Officials must first contend with a generation gap; a majority of social media users in the country are under the age of 30. The bureaucracy, however, is generally older and less flexible, Mr Salem said.
Government agencies with social media accounts must also be extra-vigilant about online security, watching out for phishing, cyber attacks or leaks of sensitive information, Mr Al Shair said.
"Engaging on social media websites increases the chances of privacy breaches," he said.
Finally, officials often struggle with the interactive element of social media, Mr Salem said.
"Most governments are not used to communicating directly with the public or accepting criticism or input that doesn't fit with the agenda of their institution," Mr Salem said. "So there's always the reputation element."
Some agencies engage only superficially, creating a Facebook or Twitter account then saying, "OK, we have social media", Mr Salem said.
Mr Kassem said that the UPC wants real input from social media users. When urban planners redesign an area, they speak to residents about their neighbourhood; social media is a logical extension of that, he said.
"There was always this kind of need to get closer to the community," Mr Kassem said.
The UPC Twitter account www.twitter.com/adupc, with posts in English and Arabic, has about 200 followers.
The Facebook page, www.facebook.com/adupc, also with English and Arabic content, has more than 35 "likes" so far.
To attract more followers and fans, the UPC started a month-long contest on Facebook promising an iPad to the first university student to get 500 people to pledge their dedication to Estidama, the UPC's sustainability initiative.
Students must either write their own pledge or accept the UPC's pledge, promising to adopt "a more sustainable lifestyle" in line with the four components of Estidama: environmental, social, economic and cultural sustainability. They then share their pledge with Facebook friends.
The contest is open to all university students in the UAE. Runners-up will be invited to participate in a sustainability workshop, which is likely to be held next month.
Mr Kassem said he hopes the contest and the council's social media presence will invite "positive debates".
