The Foreign Service Journal, July-August 2016

16 JULY-AUGUST 2016 | THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL P roject Syndicate, “ The World’s Opinion Page,” is an interna- tional, nonprofit media outlet based in Prague and New York City that features original, high-quality com- mentaries by global leaders and thinkers on a broad range of topics. In its own words: “By offering incisive perspectives from those who are shaping the world’s economics, politics, science, and culture, Project Syndicate has created an unrivaled global venue for informed public debate.” The website is well organized and user friendly, with material presented in nine broad subject areas in addi- tion to “On Point” and “In Focus” sections highlighting current issues and breaking developments. News organizations in developed countries provide financial contribu- tions for the rights to the commen- taries, which enables Project Syndi- cate to offer these rights for free, or at subsidized rates, to newspapers and other media in the developing world. Project Syndicate ’s appeal for the world’s most eminent writers is unique—a truly global audience. Project Syndicate content is cur- rently licensed by 476 publications in more than 150 countries, including The Guardian, The Globe and Mail, Marketwatch and The Huffington Post. Licensing includes free transla- tion services in 12 languages (Eng- lish, Chinese, Dutch, German, Italian, Russian, Arabic, Czech, French, Hindi, Portuguese and Spanish), and mem- ber media do their own translating into another 50 languages. Founded in 1994, the site began with the mission to help fledgling independent media outlets in post-communist countries reach a broader audience. It quickly went global, operating on the principle that “all people—wherever they live, whatever their income and whatever language they use—deserve equal access to a broad range of views by the world’s foremost leaders and thinkers on the issues, events and forces shaping their lives.” Project Syndicate is supported by the Bill and Melinda Gates Founda- tion, the European Climate Founda- tion and the Mohammed Sin Rashid Al Maktoum Global Initiatives. —Shannon Mizzi, Editorial Assistant, and Susan Maitra, Managing Editor SITE OF THE MONTH: Project Syndicate: www.project-syndicate.org As we go to print, 14 career Foreign Service nominees await confirmation to ambassadorial posts; only one has waited longer than three months. In addi- tion, 285 promotions and tenures await approval by the full Senate, 278 of which have been waiting less than three months. AFSA remains hopeful that Congress will fulfill its responsibilities regarding these nominees efficiently. For more information on AFSA’s ambassador tracker project, visit www.afsa.org/ ambassadorlist. —Ásgeir Sigfússon, Director of Communications Budget Freeze Hits Zimbabwe’s Diplomats T he government of Zimbabwe has frozen hiring at its 42 foreign mis- sions. The freeze was announced after a 2015 audit identified “idle manpower, role duplication, uncoordinated staff recruitment, flagrant abuse of overtime allowances and leave days, and salary fraud” that were costing the government up to $388 million a year, according to The Sunday Mail on May 22. The Foreign Affairs Ministry has already begun to lay off embassy clerical staff. According to Foreign Affairs Min- ister Simbarashe Mumbengegwi, this streamlining will allow the government to redress late salary payments and ensure that ambassadors have safe, modern transportation. The head of the country’s National Chamber of Commerce has even advocated closing some of the country’s embassies altogether. The Finance Ministry told the Interna- tional Monetary Fund that it will be freez- ing civil service recruitment and salaries until at least 2019. n — Shannon Mizzi, Editorial Assistant