Building effective government -- advanced seminar

Commonwealth ministers and senior administrators with a leadership role in reform of their governments' public management and administrative processes are attending a week-long seminar on public sector reform in Wellington, New Zealand.

The seminar, which began on Monday, 16 February 2004, is sponsored by the Victoria University of Wellington in collaboration with the Commonwealth Secretariat and the New Zealand Agency for International Development.

With the theme 'Building Effective Government', the seminar is focused on innovative service delivery, managing decentralisation and leading programmes of change. It will enable participants to compare and contrast their reform experiences with those of other countries.

Participants will work with seminar staff and international and New Zealand practitioners in a friendly and informal environment to identify national priorities and personal strategies for reform.

The seminar comprises a mix of presentations, case studies, workshops, panels and small group discussions. Site visits and appointments have been arranged as far as possible to meet participants' specific interests in reform.

Organised by the Secretariat's Governance and Institutional Development Division (GIDD), the seminar is part of its series of New Zealand-based activities designed to help Commonwealth developing countries strengthen the capacity of their public sector organisations.

Professor Victor Ayeni, Director of GIDD, said, "the seminar will enable member countries to focus better on their national agendas for public sector reform and the role of public sector leaders in achieving these objectives."

Speaking at the opening of the seminar, Director of the Secretariat's Corporate Services Division, Marion Cowden, said, "Heads of Government, in the Aso Rock Declaration, committed themselves to making democracy work better for pro-poor development by, amongst other things, enhancing democratic institutions and processes …

"With its focus on sharing practical experiences and preparing change strategies, and its participants who represent the highest operational levels of the public service [this seminar] is an important component of our work in addressing the priorities outlined in the Aso Rock Declaration.

"The seminar, like previous editions, aims to provide participants with a rich resource of ideas and information for ongoing reform in their own organisations."