Analysis of the Information Service

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Objectives

Since the inception of "Sí,Spain" on Freenet, the objective of the program was to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the information services of the Embassy by:

The migration to a Web platform for the service has not changed these objectives, but rather it has allowed the Embassy to expand the possibilities within each one of them, many of which were not possible on FreeNet. Specifically, the Web offered expansion to the Spanish speaking world and the Iberoamerican countries.

Statistics

Detailed access statics have been kept for "Sí,Spain" since it's transfer to the World Wide Web. It has had over 650,000 accesses in its first year. An 'access' is the retrieval of one specific page or file and does not include access to any of the images. The United States represents 45.5% of these followed by Spain with 5.1% and Canada with 4.1%. Users, from over 80 countries, have visited the Sí,Spain presentation.

Current detailed access statistics can be found at http://www.DocuWeb.ca/SiSpain/stats/.

Responses and Feedback

Providing a service on the Internet has allowed the Embassy to be more accessible to the general public and offer a level of service which would not be feasible using traditional communication mediums. Institutions, government and non-government agencies, companies, organizations, and interested individuals covering a wide range of professions from all over the world have sent over 2000 E-mail messages to "Sí, Spain". The breakdown of these E-mail messages is as follows: 

Compliments     37%
Questions       32%
Suggestions     22%
Reactions        9%
PROVIDING INFORMATION

E-mail messages are sent from around the world as "Sí, Spain" is the only Spanish Embassy on the Internet. The requests range from general tourist information, importing and investing in Spain, how to make a reservation at a specific hotel, background information for a romance novel set in Madrid, where and how to apply for grants and scholarships, how to connect to the Spanish stock exchange and even to requests of a personal nature.

(from Winnipeg, Canada August 6,1995)
"I hope to be visiting this beautiful country in the very near future and was wondering if there is any way to find out if there is a list of INTERNATIONAL BRIGADE volunteers who are buried in THE VALLEY OF THE FALLEN. My brother was killed at Teruel and was buried in a farmer's field there but I have read somewhere that some of the bodies were exhumed and reburied in the Valley of the Fallen. I realize that this is a peculiar request after so many years but this has always bothered me that I don t know where my brother is laid to rest and it is only in the last couple of years that I am now able to maybe visit Spain and find where he is buried."
EXCHANGE OF IDEAS AND INFORMATION AMONG INDIVIDUALS

Although many thought this service should be shut down during the fishing conflict,the Embassy strongly maintained that open communication and expression was essential to resolving the crisis and kept "Sí, Spain" on-line. The fishing crisis was the topic of many on-line discussion via newsgroups, listserves and especially e-mail sent to "Sí, Spain". Messages came from Canada, Spain, and other countries, supporting and opposing the position of the Spanish government and expressing concern about traveling to Spain.

(May 20, 1995 from compuserve) *translated from Spanish
Stop the visa requirements for Canadians visiting Spain. It is causing more harm than good.

(May 25, 1995 from Canada)
I have previously browsed your web site in preparation for a vacation in Madrid. Because I am a Canadian I contacted the Toronto Consulate by telephone regarding procedures to obtain a visa. I was advised of the necessary requirements.......the documents were returned with a form letter advising the visas could not be processed because of the departure date. If Spain wants to harass Canadians with visa requirements and limit travel to your country why spend money and effort on this web site. I am going to spend 4 weeks in Europe with my family (4 people) - but none of my Canadian dollars are going to be spent in Spain - who are you harassing - my family? or the businesses in Spain which have lost our patronage. I have been able to arrange my vacation - so that I will be spending my money in France and Italy but will the Spanish hotels and restaurants find alternative customers

(August 19, 1995 from Canada)
I beg to congratulate HE the Ambassador on hi successful intervention through the European Community which led to the removal of that provocative fishing net from the Canadian National Exhibition. Long live Canadian-Spanish friendship

(September 16, 1995 from Canada)
I have been to Costa Del Sol in 1991 and 1994. and wanted to return in 1995 but was unsure of the feeling towards Canadian tourists. Can you tell me how the average person in the Tapas Bars and on the streets would regard me now, a well as any hostilities I might encounter at customs, border crossings,etc. This is all very sad for someone who I not a fisherman, nor a government official, but who loves your country. Gracias.

The interactive language course and links to other related sights, many as a result of messages from the sites themselves, has made "Sí, Spain" a favorite "meeting place" for Spanofiles and especially for Spaniards living abroad. The responses stress the importance of the service in disseminating and preserving Spanish culture and most importantly allowing them to read newspapers from home everyday!!!

(Aug. 19, 1995 from Canada) *translated from Spanish
THANKYOU!! I never believed my children would have access to such a rich source of information about their heritage. It is not easy to educate 4 children abroad and still keep them in touch with their Spanish roots. We speak only Spanish at home but the rest of the time it is not so easy. Or better it "wasn't" easy, as your Web page has completely changed the situation. You have made me feel proud to be a Spaniard. Thank you again for this service.
FACILITATING COOPERATION AMONG INSTITUTIONS

A large percentage of the E-mail messages pertain to education. Many teachers use "Sí, Spain" in their classes and have overwhelmingly asked that all information be available in Spanish and English and that there be more links to Spanish schools. "Sí, Spain" hopes to serve as a vehicle by which educational and other institutions can cooperate and collaborate in new ways.

(Houston, USA 6 Feb. 1996) *translated from Spanish
I am a Spanish teacher in Houston,Texas and would like to find a high school teacher in Spain who has students interested an E-mail exchange with my students. I want my students to "meet" Spanish students so they do not have such a negative impression of Spain. They don't learn anything in their history classes about the country after 1492. I try to teach them about Spain as it today but they still have these ideas in their heads of the conquistadors. It is essential to let them meet and talk to "real people". I prefer my students to write in Spanish but they can write in English from their computers at home. I they write from the computer in my class, they will have to write in Spanish!! If the students there want to write in English to practice, that s fine. I hope you can help me. If you know anyone please contact me at.....
(note: Mr. José Felix Barrio, the Education officer at the Embassy was able to put this teacher in contact with many organizations and individuals both in Spain and the USA who were interested in a similar exchange)
INSTITUTIONAL SUPPORT

Initially there was not much support for the project within the Foreign Ministry. Several Ministers however, have sent letters of support and congratulations (*translated from Spanish):

January 1995 President of Telefonica (at the time had to access "Sí, Spain" on Freenet via telnet)
I want to congratulate all of you at the Embassy for this initiative to develop the database of "Si,Spain" and for making it accessible on a telecommuincation network...confirming the usefulness of those initiatives for a better understanding of the social functions of telecommunications...I only hope that your personal effort will be shared and be profitable for all Spanish Embassies abroad.

February 1995 Director General for the Cultural Affairs of the Spanish Foreign Ministry
.....I am please to inform you that we are investigating the possiblity that all our Foreign Missions will be able to access "Sí, Spain".

March 1995 President of the Autonomous Government of Galicia, Spain
"....I am convinced that these types of government and the advanced technologies have to be contributing factors to help resolve the many problems of miscommunication from which society at large suffers, and are the root of most international conflicts".

June 1995 Secretary General of the Foreign Press Assocation
...We all (foreign correspondents in Madrid) consider "Sí, Spain" is an optimal and effecient information resource on Spain. Many times the information we require would take days to locate here in Madrid.

June 1995 Spanish Minister of Industry an Energy
...Once again I send my congratulations for your initiative to take advantage of the new developments in information technologies in the promotion of the many facets of Spanish life. I agree that these technologies will soon become the global means for retrieving information and providing communcation.

October 1995 The Spanish Minister of Education and Science
..The Internet presentation for 'Diplomacy in the Third Millenium' is something I have to thank you for, and also to congratulate you for the many success of the program "Sí,Spain", a basic tool for promoting the culture of our country...".

Difficulties and Constraints

Two main barriers had to be overcome to install "Sí,Spain" in the WEB site, especially at this early stage, in March 1995.

  1. Technological: It was a difficult process to find the "right" provider to convert the NCF files to HTML. Unsatisfactory responses from several private companies prompted the Embassy to return to the University where they were put in contact with DocuWeb Information Services Inc.

  2. Administrative: As mentioned before, at the beginning of this new experience, the knowledge about the Web was very scarce and even at the highest levels of their respective National administrations many embassies found a real lack of proper information on the advantages of the Web. In our case, being the first Embassy ever to set a program on the Web, even if the general lines had been already shown, in it's NCF form, to the Spanish Minister of Industry Mr. Eguiagaray during his official visit to Ottawa in May 94, the most significant difficulties, within Foreign Affairs were the following:

    • The non-existence of a budget for the project, since the fact of a "Cultural electronic or Computer program" was very new in the Department.

    • Again, at this early times, the know-how for developing Web sites, was also lacking, so to be a 'pioneer' brought also certain constrains.

    • So a process of bottom-up attitude was taken by the Embassy of Spain in Ottawa, who decided to go, always with the previous information and implicit assent of the Foreign Ministry, using all possible means to inform key decision makers about the impact of "Sí,Spain", contacting the media (letters to the editor) and supporting on-line demostrations, for civil servants, with the help of FUNDESCO, aiming to make an irreversible fact the presence of "Sí,Spain" in the NET to become, one day, the international electronic information service of the Spanish Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

    • In that process, the whole staff of the Embassy and the rest of the working team was very much encouraged by some of the awards which spontaneously received from different institutions and the public opinion.

Awards

Future Developments of "Sí, Spain"

Many of the developments of "Sí, Spain" have been in response to the feedback received from individual users, institutions and related WEB sites. Having a WEB server has allowed the Embassy to provide a truly dynamic and interactive information service. The plans for future developments of the service are:

INFORMATION
Expand on all areas of the existing information to create a multi-media database
  • video, audio, text and visuals
  • bilingual Spanish, English
  • develop a fully interactive language course

COMMUNICATION
"Sí, Spain" to serve as a meeting place for individuals, organizations, private business and institutions to facilitate cooperation, partnerships, employment, educational exchanges, etc. between Spain and other countries

DISSEMINATION
"Sí, Spain" to become the World Wide information service of the Spanish Ministry of Foreign affairs and Trade.

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