Dubai School of Government to lead 100-member Arab delegation to UN forum in Vienna

The forum entitled, 'Building Trust in Government', will be held from June 26-29.
The delegation includes ministers from the UAE, Libya, Tunisia, Lebanon and Jordan as well as representatives from the public sector in the Arab world. The Forum will be attended by many heads of states, senior government officials, NGOs and private sector representatives from around the world.

Prominent speakers including Mary Robinson, President of Realizing Rights: The Ethical Globalization Initiative; Ban Ki-Moon, Secretary-General, United Nations; and Anwar Ibrahim, former Deputy Prime Minister of Malaysia, and acting President of AccountAbility, will be at the event to share their insights on how governments can earn goodwill through transparency and accountability.

The forum will offer participants an opportunity to attend one of seven highly focused capacity development workshops organised by the Institutional Partners Group. The group includes members of the UN and renowned institutions such as the Harvard University and Transparency International.

In the run-up to the forum, DSG hosted in Dubai the 2nd Arab Forum for Reinventing Government in April 2006. Nabil Al Yousuf, Executive President of DSG, described the forum as an "unprecedented opportunity" for the Arab world to discuss how governments can "enhance their effectiveness". Some of the policy recommendations made at the Dubai forum will be presented at the Global Forum in Vienna.

Among the recommendations was the call to increase the exchange of critical information and best practices among Arab countries - especially among marginalised segments in society, including orphans, the elderly and disabled. They also focused on leveraging opportunities offered by technology advancements and a knowledge-based organisation to tap available resources to ensure world class services.