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www.oecd.org/mingov2005
Meeting of the Public Governance Committee at Ministerial Level, Rotterdam, 2005
Ministers and senior officials from 27 member countries and Slovenia met in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, on 28 November 2005 to discuss the role of government in the 21st century. The meeting was chaired by Alexander Pechtold, Dutch Minister for Government Reform and Kingdom Relations.
The meeting highlighted issues of public trust and communication between government and citizens. Ministers focused first on experiences and challenges of improving government's dialogue with the public, both in terms of listening to citizens' concerns, expectations and needs, and communicating with the public about government processes and policies. They debated ways to deliver better results, examining the tools available to modern governments and approaches to enhancing government capacity. The key focus areas were as follows:
Trust in government
A responsible government is fair, inclusive, respects the rule of law, works for the collective interest, and looks at the medium to long-term situation. A legitimate government is a government deserving of the trust of citizens. Keeping the publics trust is essential for governments to carry out successful programmes and reform.
Dialogue with citizens
Ministers agreed that two-way communications with citizens were essential to formulating and implementing effective policies and strengthening trust. New technologies are merely a complement to more traditional forms of communication. Delegates stressed that it is important for governments to be clear with the public, to explain risks and necessary trade-offs.
Delivering results
Countries are currently focusing on issues such as measuring and improving public sector performance and results, offering quality services for citizens, enhancing flexibility and integrity in the public service. Delegates noted the usefulness of international learning and benchmarking. They also highlighted the need for better risk assessment and management in the public sector.
Parallel student conference
In parallel to the Ministerial meeting, a student conference was organised by Erasmus University Rotterdam. An international mix of Master students in Public Management and Public Policy discussed the same questions and reported their findings at the end of the day. This innovative arrangement provided a way to introduce the views of younger citizens into the debate.
Future directions
In addition to allowing countries to share ideas and experience, the ministerial meeting provided important guidance for future OECD work on public governance. Helping governments build and strengthen public trust will be an over-arching goal of the Public Governance Committee's activities for the next several years. Folllowing the meeting the Committee developed a programme of work for 2007-2008 that focused on the following:
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assessing results of reform, including the development of key indicators of good government and efficient public services;
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open and inclusive policy making, increasing transparency and engaging citizens for better policies;
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improving risk awareness, assessment and management in the public sector; and
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building better relations across levels of government, particularly in a context of decentralisation.
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