International Relations and Global Affairs Training Course

Duration 5 days 10 modules · 33 contact hours
Level Intermediate Certificate on completion
Who attends Policy Advisers, Diplomats and Foreign Affairs Officers and others
Fee from USD 1,100 KSh 95,000 for Kenyan organisations
Where 52 cities + online See dates by city
Next start 16 Nov 2026 Course code SD-PP-050

Before you join: Participants should have professional experience in government, public policy, regulation, development, security, international business or public affairs.

Dates & prices

Two start dates a month in every city, and live online on weekdays or weekends. Fees are per participant; classroom fees include tuition, materials, lunch and refreshments, and the certificate.

Suggest a date or city

Showing the next six months. Later dates, other cities and private deliveries for your team are available on request.

Course overview

International relations decisions affect trade access, security cooperation, development funding, sanctions exposure, migration policy and institutional credibility. Public-sector professionals must interpret events beyond headlines, distinguish national interests from stated positions, and assess how international institutions, regional blocs and non-state actors shape policy choices. Without a structured approach, teams can misread diplomatic signals, underestimate geopolitical risk or prepare weak positions for international engagement.

This course examines the theories, actors, institutions and power relationships that shape world politics. Participants study foreign-policy decision-making, geopolitical analysis, international security, conflict management, global political economy, human rights, regional integration and multilateral diplomacy. They apply frameworks including levels of analysis, DIME, PESTLE, stakeholder mapping, BATNA and ZOPA to assess international issues and develop defensible policy positions. The course also addresses how international law, sanctions, trade rules, development institutions and regional organisations affect domestic public policy.

Teaching combines focused instructor briefings with contemporary cases, structured group analysis, negotiation simulations and policy-focused discussions. Cases may include UN Security Council action, regional trade disputes, humanitarian interventions, sanctions design, cross-border water negotiations and foreign-investment decisions. Participants leave with an international affairs briefing pack containing a geopolitical risk assessment, stakeholder map, country-position template, negotiation preparation sheet and personal application plan.

The course is suited to public officials, policy advisers, diplomats, regulators, development professionals, security practitioners and corporate public-affairs staff whose work requires informed engagement with international actors and cross-border policy issues.

What you will be able to do

  • Apply international relations theories to explain state behaviour and policy choices
  • Analyse geopolitical developments using PESTLE, DIME and stakeholder-mapping methods
  • Assess national interests, strategic objectives and foreign-policy instruments
  • Prepare country positions for multilateral meetings and bilateral engagements
  • Evaluate security, sanctions and conflict risks affecting public policy decisions
  • Interpret international institutions, treaty obligations and regional integration arrangements
  • Develop negotiation strategies using BATNA, ZOPA and interest-based bargaining
  • Produce a concise international affairs briefing with recommendations and risk controls

Benefits of attending

For you

  • Frame international events using recognised analytical lenses rather than media narratives
  • Write sharper ministerial and executive briefings on geopolitical developments
  • Contribute credible analysis during cross-border policy and regulatory discussions
  • Prepare more effectively for international meetings, delegations and negotiations
  • Identify career pathways in diplomacy, multilateral affairs and geopolitical risk roles

For your organisation

  • Improves the quality of advice on international commitments and external policy risks
  • Strengthens preparation for multilateral forums, donor meetings and bilateral negotiations
  • Reduces exposure to poorly assessed sanctions, trade and geopolitical risks
  • Creates more consistent country positions across ministries, agencies and public bodies
  • Builds internal capability to translate global developments into domestic policy action

Course modules

10 modules over 5 days

Participants can use core international relations theories to explain competing interpretations of state behaviour.

  • Realism, liberalism and constructivism compared through state behaviour and institutions
  • Levels-of-analysis framework separates individual, state and system explanations
  • Westphalian sovereignty, self-determination and non-intervention in diplomatic disputes
  • Power, legitimacy and authority distinguished in international political analysis
  • Colonial legacies and decolonisation shaping present diplomatic alignments
  • Map a news event using competing theoretical explanations

Participants can identify influential actors and assess how national interests shape foreign-policy choices.

  • States, international organisations, firms and civil-society actors compared
  • National interest assessed through security, prosperity, values and legitimacy
  • Foreign-policy objectives translated into measurable strategic priorities
  • DIME framework categorises diplomatic, information, military and economic instruments
  • Domestic politics, bureaucracy and public opinion influencing external policy
  • Stakeholder maps identify influence, interests, alliances and likely opposition

Participants can assess geopolitical competition and its consequences for national policy choices.

  • Hard, soft and smart power assessed through observable policy instruments
  • Geopolitical analysis links geography, resources, chokepoints and strategic access
  • PESTLE analysis structures country-level political and economic risk assessment
  • Great-power competition examined through technology, trade and security disputes
  • Critical minerals, energy routes and infrastructure as strategic assets
  • Scenario matrices test policy responses under uncertain geopolitical conditions

Participants can explain how international institutions influence national obligations, resources and policy space.

  • United Nations organs, mandates and voting arrangements examined
  • UN Charter principles guide collective security and peaceful dispute settlement
  • World Bank, IMF and regional banks influence public-policy financing
  • WTO rules govern tariffs, subsidies and trade-dispute procedures
  • Treaty ratification, reservations and implementation create domestic obligations
  • Institutional forums matched to policy objectives and national interests

Participants can analyse security threats, conflict drivers and appropriate international response options.

  • Traditional, human, cyber and climate security threats compared
  • Conflict analysis maps actors, grievances, capacities and triggering events
  • Conflict escalation assessed using interests, capabilities and misperceptions
  • Deterrence, containment and collective security distinguished through cases
  • Sanctions design considers targets, exemptions, enforcement and unintended effects
  • Crisis communication principles support credible public and diplomatic messaging

Participants can assess how trade, finance and supply chains affect international policy decisions.

  • Comparative advantage and strategic trade policy shape market access
  • Tariffs, quotas and non-tariff barriers assessed through distributional effects
  • Foreign direct investment evaluated against national-development policy objectives
  • Global value chains expose dependencies in food, energy and technology
  • Sovereign debt, conditionality and credit ratings affect policy autonomy
  • Economic statecraft uses trade, aid and finance for influence

Participants can identify legal and normative considerations in international policy and crisis decisions.

  • Sources of international law include treaties, custom and general principles
  • Vienna Convention rules guide treaty interpretation and state consent
  • Human rights obligations assessed through respect, protect and fulfil duties
  • International humanitarian law distinguishes civilians, combatants and protected objects
  • Responsibility to Protect examined against sovereignty and Security Council authority
  • Humanitarian access negotiations balance neutrality, impartiality and operational security

Participants can assess regional organisations and cross-border arrangements affecting national policy.

  • Regional integration models compare free-trade areas, unions and common markets
  • ASEAN, African Union and European Union institutional models contrasted
  • Regional security organisations coordinate peace operations and mediation
  • Cross-border water governance applies basin agreements and benefit-sharing principles
  • Migration cooperation balances border management, protection and labour needs
  • Regional policy positions reconcile domestic priorities with collective commitments

Participants can prepare and conduct principled negotiations in bilateral and multilateral settings.

  • Diplomatic protocol, representation and credentials shape formal engagement
  • Interest-based bargaining separates positions from underlying needs and concerns
  • BATNA analysis defines alternatives before entering international negotiations
  • ZOPA assessment identifies feasible settlement ranges between delegations
  • Negotiation briefs specify objectives, red lines, concessions and messaging
  • Coalition building identifies partners, swing actors and shared interests

Participants can produce an evidence-based international affairs briefing with practical policy recommendations.

  • Issue framing defines the decision, audience, urgency and policy scope
  • Country brief templates integrate interests, actors, risks and opportunities
  • Evidence hierarchies distinguish official sources, intelligence and media reporting
  • Risk registers assign probability, impact, ownership and mitigation actions
  • Policy options compare feasibility, legality, cost and diplomatic consequences
  • Application plans schedule stakeholder engagement, monitoring and briefing updates

Exercises and examples are adapted to each cohort's sectors and roles.

What you take back to work

  1. Geopolitical risk assessment template
  2. Country and stakeholder mapping model
  3. Foreign-policy position paper template
  4. International negotiation preparation sheet
  5. Sanctions and conflict risk checklist
  6. International affairs briefing pack

Who should attend

  • Policy Advisers — assess international developments affecting domestic policy and ministerial advice
  • Diplomats and Foreign Affairs Officers — prepare positions and manage bilateral or multilateral engagements
  • Government Regulators — interpret cross-border rules, sanctions and international commitments
  • Development Programme Managers — work with donor institutions, governments and multilateral agencies
  • Security and Risk Managers — evaluate geopolitical threats, conflict dynamics and strategic exposure
  • Corporate Public Affairs Managers — monitor international policy issues affecting market access and investment

Skills and tools covered

Geopolitical analysisForeign policy assessmentMultilateral diplomacyInternational negotiationSecurity risk analysisPolicy briefing

Tools and standards

PESTLE analysis, DIME framework, BATNA, ZOPA

How the course runs

Training methodology

The course uses short instructor briefings to establish concepts, followed by case analysis drawn from diplomacy, trade, security, development and regional politics. Participants examine official statements, treaty provisions, sanctions measures and country-risk evidence in small groups. Simulations focus on multilateral negotiation, crisis response and foreign-policy coordination. Facilitated discussions test competing interpretations of events and policy choices. Each participant develops an application plan and briefing materials linked to an international issue relevant to their role.

Requirements and prerequisites

Participants should have professional experience in government, public policy, regulation, development, security, international business or public affairs. They should be able to read policy documents, follow current affairs and contribute to structured discussions of national and international issues. Familiarity with their country's government system, major international institutions or basic economics is useful but not essential. No prior study of international relations theory, diplomatic protocol, international law or negotiation is required. The course does not assume military, intelligence or foreign-service experience.

A typical training day

08:30 – 10:30First session
10:30 – 10:45Refreshment break
10:45 – 12:30Second session
12:30 – 13:30Lunch and networking
13:30 – 15:00Third session
15:00 – 15:15Refreshment break
15:15 – 16:30Workshop and daily review

Live online deliveries follow the same structure in East Africa Time, with shorter screen blocks and longer breaks.

What the fee includes

  • Instruction by a practitioner facilitator
  • Full course workbook and materials
  • Exercise files, templates and case studies
  • Refreshments and lunch on classroom deliveries
  • Certificate of completion
  • Post-course application plan

Frequently asked questions

Professional familiarity with public policy, government, regulation, development, security or public affairs is helpful. No previous study of international relations theory, diplomacy or international law is required.

Bring a current international issue, country relationship or cross-border policy challenge relevant to your work. Participants may use this issue when preparing analyses, briefing materials and their application plan.

The course is designed for professionals whose decisions or advice are affected by international institutions, foreign governments, trade rules, security issues or regional cooperation. It suits both public-sector staff and corporate or NGO professionals working with public authorities.

This course covers diplomacy and legal principles, but places them within the wider political, economic and security forces shaping international affairs. It focuses on analysing issues and preparing usable policy positions rather than protocol alone or detailed legal interpretation.

Participants can use the briefing, country-risk, stakeholder and negotiation templates for ministerial submissions, international meetings, donor engagements and strategic planning. The methods also support regular monitoring of geopolitical developments and international commitments.

The five-day programme provides approximately 32.5 contact hours, normally from 08:30 to 16:30 each day. Time is divided between instructor input, case work, group analysis, simulations, discussion and individual application planning.

Questions about this course?

Ask about dates, fees, group bookings or running it for your team. Our training team replies by email.

Ask on WhatsApp info@skillsetdevelopment.com

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