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Diploma in Diplomacy and World Affairs conducted by the BIDTI is a huge success


Few years back, any enterprising or catastrophic event in any part of the world would not bother our day to day lifestyle. However in present time, even a chicken suffering from mild fever in a remote village of Africa or a casual statement from any individual thousands of miles away from us, effects our life, our choices, our decisions, shapes our opinions and the way we perceive our surroundings.

The globalized world and the advances in information technology has made our lives much more informed than ever before. However despite of the all the information at our disposal, our understanding of the world around us is still very limited. The reason lies in our inability to determine the adequacy of information and ply it with diplomatic and leadership skills in one’s favor.

One of the persuasive reasons behind studying diplomacy and world affairs in today’s time is, that knowingly or unknowingly we all practice it and get influenced by it. 

 As a practitioner of international marketing, my decision to study Diplomacy and World Affairs was motivated by desire to know how the real world works beyond the boundaries of formal education.

The Bandaranaike International Diplomatic Training Institute (BIDTI), which acts as the training arm of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs – Government of Sri Lanka was the establishment of choice, owing to its two decade old credentials of training diplomats and professionals for the challenges of dynamic world.

The distinctiveness of one year “Diploma in Diplomacy & World Affairs” conducted by BIDTI, is reflected not only in its faculties & curriculum but in its participants as well. The faculties and subject experts are the professionals who have themselves practiced the fundamentals of diplomacy as they should be, and even beyond limitations of academic doctrines. Their firsthand experiences, candid dispositions and unconstrained interaction with the participants provides a glimpse of the real world to the aspiring diplomats. “Your own life is too short to learn from your own mistakes. Men become wise by learning from the experiences of others”

The aforesaid words of wisdom from the 4th century BC text “Kautilya Arthashastra”, find pragmatic relevance in BIDTI classrooms. BIDTI, as the name suggests, not only educates but trains its participants for the pragmatic challenges of contemporary world. The program enables its participants to understand contemporary developments, make conscious choices and take informed decisions.

Fields of study such as Diplomacy, Foreign Policy, Security Studies, Global Politics, Global Issues, International Law, and International & Regional Organizations make the program a need for any global citizen. Professional skills of communication, negotiations, protocols, leadership imparted during the diploma are relevant to the participants from all walks of life.

Also, the interesting mix of participants, which hail from a diversity of geographies, culture, social professional backgrounds, age and nationalities, add spectrums to the class room discussions and thereby promote democratic approach in putting forward individual opinions. BIDTI in true sense represents an entire nation on global platforms. I firmly believe, that it is impossible to understand and know a culture through statistical data, journals or reports. A culture, its people, customs, rituals, cuisines, its festivals can only and only be experienced. As an Indian citizen, new to Sri Lanka, BIDTI has been such an experience for me.

My confidence in the training I obtained through BIDTI reflects in my everyday interaction with my colleagues and customers, not only in Sri Lanka but wherever my work takes me along. It has helped me to engage diverse people in meaningful discussions and seek their interests for both professional and personal conveniences.

I am sincerely content to pursue one year diploma at BIDTI and would recommend the same, as it has given me enduring enthusiasm towards the dynamic field of Diplomacy and Leadership.

Saurabh Mishra was a student from the XVII Diploma in Diplomacy & World Affairs Batch. 

The opinions expressed in this article are the author’s own and not the institutional views of the BIDTI, nor do they necessarily reflect the position of any other institution or individual with which the author is affiliated.
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