Public diplomacy is the diplomatic activity carried out to non-state actors. It is about informing, communicating, and interacting with civil society: media, scholars, entrepreneurs, and the general public. Through public diplomacy, diplomats aim at conveying the right image of the country, promoting its strengths, and its differentiating and competitive factors.
In view of globalization trends, the increasing mobility of the populations, the importance of the public opinion, and the development of information technologies that shorten communication time and distance, Public diplomacy became vital, particularly in its digital dimension.
The Portuguese diplomatic network carries out every day actions of public diplomacy, opening embassies and promoting the Portuguese culture and products to foreign publics, coordinating these activities with relevant agencies and institutes, such as AICEP, Camões or Turismo de Portugal.
Most of our embassies and consulates are present in the digital space, through websites and social media. Through these channels, they spread initiatives promoting the image of Portugal, as well as other relevant Portuguese stances within our foreign policy.
The key aggregating tool of Portuguese digital public diplomacy is the website Portal Diplomático (Diplomatic Portal), through which users can access the MFA (Ministry of Public Affairs) world, as well as more structured and targeted information about Portugal.
