Participatory & Transparent
Governance
- 5,000 people attend Global Forum on Reinventing Government in Seoul

The Sixth Global Forum on Reinventing Government will open for a four-day run at the COEX in southeastern Seoul on May 24 with some 5,000 prominent figures around the world participating.
Confirmed participants of the forum, the first one in Asia, will include South Korean President Roh Moo-hyun,; Prime Minister Lee Hae-chan,; Lula Da Silva, Brazilian president,; Emomali Rahmonov, president of Tajikistan, Baradaran Shoraka, Iranian vice president,; Thaksin Shinawatra, Thai prime minister,; Ali M. Shein, vice president of Tanzania,; Driss Jettou, Moroccan prime minister,; Macky Sall, Senegalese prime minister, and Mahinda Rajapaksa, Sri Lankan prime minister. Ministers and senior government officials from 130 countries are expected to attend the forum. The representatives of international organizations and academia and civic groups, including UN, UNDP, UNHABITAT, OECE and World Bank, will be also present.
The theme of the 6th Global Forum, "Reinventing Government: Toward Participatory and Transparent Governance," coincides with participation and transparency, part of the tenets and values the President Roh Moo-hyun Participatory Government purses. The current administration led by President Roh has consistently sought to reinvent itself with the objective of establishing a transparent and accountable administration that is founded on a harmonious basis among the state, business and civil society.
"Good governance is no longer the concern of governments alone. Increasingly, key players in governance also include business and civil society in countries across the globe. Indeed, the need for participation and transparency in governance is more evident than ever before," Kim Ho-young, secretary general of the Secretariat for the 6th Global Forum on Reinventing Government, said in an earlier interview with NewsWorld.
The United States initiated the 1st Global Forum in 1999 with a theme entitled "Strategy for 21st Century Government" to understand the crucial link between efficient government and prosperous economy and to share ideas and effective practices to improve government services. Since its successful inception, the forum has emerged as one of the largest and most influential global events on government reinvention, drawing incumbent as well as former heads of state, senior government officials, academics, CEOs and representatives of international organizations and civic groups to the scene.
The subsequent forums were organized by the governments of Brazil, Italy, Morocco and Mexico, dealing with various themes essential to establishing innovative governance. The Global Forum on Reinventing Government gained solid ground as the United Nations vowed to extend support and provide funding for future Global Forums at its third meeting in Naples.
In order to prepare for the forum, the National Committee for the 6th Global Forum on Reinventing Government has been set up, which is chaired by Prime Minister Lee Hae-chan and joined by ministers of the Republic of Korea as well as relevant experts and leaders from the private sector. The Secretariat for the 6th Global Forum on Reinventing Government and an advisory committee are also in operation to provide practical assistance to the Committee.
In the age of information technology, globalization and decentralized governance, there is an increased need for effective, accountable and transparent administrative and management structures, based on collaboration and partnership among the key players of the state. The theme for the 6th Forum "Reinventing Government: Toward Participatory and Transparent Governance" was specifically chosen to reflect the importance of those principles.
The forum consists of five plenary sessions where representatives of state and well-known experts in the main sectors of governance (government, business and civil society) will deliver keynote speeches and introduce practical cases of reinvention.
Nine workshops will also be held to provide an opportunity for the participants to acquire practical applications of government reinvention, featuring top policymakers and experts from distinguished institutions, such as UNDESA, UNDP, World Bank, Transparency International, Harvard University, as well as local academics and research centers, including KDI School, KIPA, KRILA and KAPA.
The Korea Session, to be held on May 25 at the COEX auditorium is designed to share Korea's cases as an example of government reinvention with other countries and to create participatory atmosphere for government reinvention. An evaluation of Korean government reinvention from foreign point of view and a round table discussion will also take place.
The Ministerial Round Table on Innovation is a side event of the 6th Global Forum on Reinventing Government that will offer an additional opportunity for the participants to share their experiences on innovation and present model cases. Considering the limited time given for the participants at the plenary sessions, the Ministerial Round Table on Innovation will serve as an important venue for the participating ministers and senior officials from across the world to share their visions on government reinvention.
The Governors and Mayors Round Table, also a side event, will provide a venue for heads of local governments from across the world to share experiences of innovation and seek mutual cooperation for regional development. Participants will use this opportunity to promote effectiveness of local governments and regional development strategy by sharing model cases of innovation and regional information from across the globe.
International Innovation Exhibition2005 (InnoEx2005) will introduce accomplishments of various countries and organizations to share benchmark applications aimed at enhancing public service and promoting e-governance and corporate transparency. The exhibitors will also provide a useful venue for sharing ideas and experiences of governments, corporations and civic groups worldwide. To be held alongside with the plenary sessions, the exhibitions will be divided into four different sections - Korean Pavilion, Foreign Pavilion, Enterprise Pavilion and NGO & Public Institution Pavilion.
The Korean Pavilion will feature central and local governments that experiment with various initiatives to foster innovations in governance, such as implementing e-government applications. The Foreign Pavilion will present governments and organizations worldwide that have received outstanding achievements, such as Governmental innovation cases in the e-governance, public administration, security service, environment, civil education and medical service areas with their organizational introduction.
Fifteen local and multi-national corporations with innovative IT-related technologies and management methods will be introduced at the Enterprise Pavilion, whereas the NGO & Public Institution Pavilion will present NGOs and national corporations which promote participation and transparency.
As the Global Forum does not hold exclusive membership countries, unlike most other international meetings, we will continue to exert all-out efforts to attract as many important figures as possible to the 6th Global Forum.

The Participatory Government of Korea
Oh Young-kyo, minister of the Ministry of Administration and Home Affairs (MOGAHA), is taking the initiative in reinventing the government.
MOGAHA Minister Oh, who has been credited with reforming KOTRA, a state-invested corporation like a private company, is now endeavoring to change the way public servants perform their duties. The minister, who took office as the minister of MOGAHA in charge of government innovations a little more than three months ago, is causing a sensation by introducing a team system, a departure from decades-long seniority regime.
In reality, each past government had come up with a wide range of reform measures whenever it was inaugurated, but had fizzled with only hollow slogans. However, innovations are being made - in a wide area and a quality-oriented one, not a superficial one, - based on key principle - autonomy and decentralization, as the Participatory Government has advocated as vision of an efficient government with the public participation.
The Presidential Committee on Government Innovation and Decentralization (PCGID) is orchestrating far-reaching innovations in the public sector.
Yoon Sung-shik, PCGID chairman, is apparently optimistic, saying, "Each government agency apparently shows strong determination to carry out innovations in earnest, not ending up with transient slogans. This year will witness much tangible outcomes".
"First of all, it depends on each government chiefs" will and understanding. The reform pace varies according to different organizational cultures. Some government agencies seem to be reformative, but others tend to be so conservative. Reforms can be made easily or difficultly, depending on the nature of organization and duties. Reforming "Cheong" enforcement agencies can be made relatively easily unlike government agencies responsible for government policies", Yoon said in an interview.
Yoon said, "We have to wait for a few years to reap outcomes from innovations. Most of these assessments are based on surveys of businessmen. It will take time until businessmen recognize any changes the government has made. Even though the outcomes come out belatedly, I believe that Korea's competitive edge would be enhanced remarkably".
"A majority is benefiting from innovations, but they are dispersed like numerous grains of sand, so they do not openly express their support for innovations, whereas those who are worried about any possible damage they suffer due to innovations tend to express strong dissatisfaction or actively keep guard. These kinds of opposition, conflicts and accusations are apparently closed up, but nothing can be achieved when too much attention is paid to views of the opposing side", he said.
"Once radical steps designed to ensure transparency are worked out as pushed by the Participatory Government, everything except confidential documents and individuals' information will be made public. In this regard, public servants would perform their duties, considering that what they do are to be disclosed to the public", Yoon said.
Yoon noted, "It is the best policy to make assessments based on objective and metrical indices. It would be better to arrange essential evaluation indices in a simplified manner rather than detailed and complex ones, which could make public servants tired. We are now overhauling the national evaluation system the way simple, key evaluations could be made instead of duplicated or erroneously-conceived evaluation. I see that persons and organizations found to manage to make innovations have to be offered any incentives in terms of personnel change and budgets. Such boosting forces are necessary so as to get organizations moving. It is a mandate to offer incentives in reward for any achievements".
"In the 21st century, organizational innovations should be made on a consistent mode. Innovations will have to be staged continuously as far as any body still exists. In ancient times, model solutions did not need to be changed once a system was built up, as things have changed on a continuous basis, optimum alternative options need to be obtained immediately at each time, so no end in innovations is in sight. Innovations should be put on an automotive mode to build up an infrastructure for making innovations on a consistent basis. The automotive mode for innovations means market competition in the private sector. The innovation-oriented culture needs to be established. The second important thing is evaluation. The higher transparency is getting, the more innovations could occur. Surveys of cases in foreign countries showed that many unexpected innovations followed on the heels of enhancing transparency", Yoon said. nw