What is international government relations?

It is the practice of navigating regulation, policy, and political relationships across countries: engaging governments, regulators, and multilateral institutions to shape outcomes in more than one jurisdiction.

What is global public affairs?

Global public affairs is the work of shaping the policy, regulatory and political conditions an organization faces in many countries at once. It joins government relations, regulatory strategy and stakeholder engagement across markets, and keeps one position consistent while adapting how it is argued in each capital.

What are government-to-government introductions?

Facilitated, credible connections between governments and the institutions around them: convening the right people, at the right level, so a serious conversation can begin.

Do firms that act for foreign governments or companies have to register?

Often, yes. In the United States, anyone acting for a foreign principal in political activities registers under the Foreign Agents Registration Act and files regular public disclosures. The EU Transparency Register, the UK register of consultant lobbyists and many national registers add rules of their own, so registration is checked market by market before engagement begins.

Does Lincoln work with multilateral institutions?

Yes. Our international work brings us alongside multilateral institutions and development bodies, connecting them with governments, capital, and partners.

Practice Areas

International Affairs & Government Relations

An international public affairs firm helps an organization deal with governments, regulators and multilateral institutions in more than one country at once. Companies, investors and governments bring one in when decisions abroad, often several at the same time, will shape a market entry, an investment or a partnership. Lincoln Strategy Group does this work in 73 countries, on five continents: it makes the introductions, builds the partnerships, and carries a position through to a decision.

What does an international public affairs firm do?

It does the work of a public affairs firm in several places at once, and keeps those places in step. It watches the legislatures, regulators and public consultations in each market that matters, including the European Union and the international bodies whose standards find their way into national law. It maps who decides in each country, and who influences them. It holds one position for the client and adapts how that position is argued in each capital. It opens doors at the right level, from a regulator to a ministry to a development institution. And it builds local support with industry, partners and affected communities, so the position is not seen as imported.

Government-to-government

We make facilitated, credible connections between governments, ministries, and the multilateral institutions that work alongside them, convening the right people, at the right level, so a serious conversation can begin. It is the quiet, relationship-driven core of international work.

How should a company run public affairs across several countries?

Set priorities at the center and lead engagement locally. The center decides which issues matter most, what the company's position is, and who owns each issue. Local teams, made up of people who know each place, decide how that position is argued and to whom. A workable sequence has six steps. List every market where a government decision could change the company's costs, access or license to operate. Rank those markets by what is at stake and how soon. Name one owner for each issue. Write one position, with local variants that never contradict it. Keep a shared calendar of consultations, votes and approval deadlines across all markets. Review the whole picture every quarter. The usual failure is drift: one market concedes a point that another is still fighting, and an official notices. A single owner and a single position prevent it.

Cross-border regulatory strategy

Regulation, policy, and approvals look different in every jurisdiction. We bring disciplined method to local reality across 73 countries: navigating regulators, building coalitions, and shaping the environment around a decision, with the cultural fluency that international work demands.

What rules apply when engaging governments abroad?

Each country sets its own, and the rules are tightening. In the United States, people who act for a foreign principal in political activities must register under the Foreign Agents Registration Act and publicly disclose the relationship, their activities and the money involved. In the European Union, only organizations in the Transparency Register can meet Commissioners, Members and officials in the institutions' buildings. The OECD's recommendation on transparency and integrity in lobbying and influence, revised in 2024, now asks governments to bring influence on behalf of foreign states and state-owned companies into the open as well. Before any engagement, we establish who must register, where, and on whose behalf. A firm that cannot answer those questions market by market puts its clients at risk.

Partnerships and capital

We connect NGOs, corporations, development institutions, and capital, including through blended finance and multilateral co-financing aligned with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, to move projects forward, often in emerging markets. Our international affairs and partnerships practice is the firm's fastest-growing.

Alongside multilateral institutions

Our work brings us alongside multilateral institutions and development bodies. We help states, ministries, and organizations reach the counterparts who can actually move a decision.

Common questions

What is international government relations?: It is the practice of navigating regulation, policy, and political relationships across countries: engaging governments, regulators, and multilateral institutions to shape outcomes in more than one jurisdiction.
What is global public affairs?: Global public affairs is the work of shaping the policy, regulatory and political conditions an organization faces in many countries at once. It joins government relations, regulatory strategy and stakeholder engagement across markets, and keeps one position consistent while adapting how it is argued in each capital.
What are government-to-government introductions?: Facilitated, credible connections between governments and the institutions around them: convening the right people, at the right level, so a serious conversation can begin.
Do firms that act for foreign governments or companies have to register?: Often, yes. In the United States, anyone acting for a foreign principal in political activities registers under the Foreign Agents Registration Act and files regular public disclosures. The EU Transparency Register, the UK register of consultant lobbyists and many national registers add rules of their own, so registration is checked market by market before engagement begins.
Does Lincoln work with multilateral institutions?: Yes. Our international work brings us alongside multilateral institutions and development bodies, connecting them with governments, capital, and partners.

Perspectives

Sectors

Technology & Telecom

Comparisons

Blended Finance vs Traditional Financing

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