Government leaders complete Australia leg of Global Cities Study Programme

Mike Ahern, Queensland Government Special Representative for Africa, the Middle East and India, introduced the delegates to the programme session and Margaret Keech, Minister for Tourism, Fair Trading, Wine Industry Development and Women, welcomed them.

Organised by the Dubai School of Government (DSG) the sessions were held in Brisbane, Australia from 12-13 July as part of the 'Managing Global Cities Study Programme'. The programme brought together representatives from the Queensland and Brisbane governments to engage their counterparts from the UAE on the challenges and opportunities in managing global cities.

Adel Al Shared, Director, Nationals' Development, The Executive Office, said: "The programme is driven by the desire to acquire new perspectives on the management of cities and the need to foster the knowledge and creativity required to earn Dubai the distinction of a 'global city'.

"Through the 'Global Cities Study Programme', we have a wonderful opportunity to engage directly with people who have played prominent roles in the strategic development and management of their cities. This has provided us with special insights we believe will be useful to invest into our own vision for Dubai."

Al Shared highlighted the similarities between Dubai and Brisbane, especially the fact that both have local governments operating within the context of a Federal set up, in addition to the demographic and geographic common aspects.

Areas covered during the programme included Southeast Queensland (SEQ) infrastructure and planning its development; Land and Water Management; Brisbane Development Plan; Traffic Control and Toll System; Government initiatives encouraging innovation; Performance Management System for Government; Investment Strategy; Program promotion Plan; and a visit to the Brisbane Traffic Management Centre.

Featured sessions included lectures by Ken Smith, Director-General and Coordinator-General Department of Infrastructure, who discussed the Queensland Government's infrastructure priorities and delivery timelines to manage growth. Michael Kinnane, Director-General, Department Local Government Planning, presented Queensland's current planning climate and the challenges his department faces in dealing with population growth, climate change, resource boom and rural decline.

Ian Reeves, General Manager, Engineering and Technology, and George Pund, Manager of Transport and Traffic, Brisbane City Council (BCC), demonstrated the BCC's strategies for managing transport growth. David Morgans, Director Infrastructure Planning, Tourism Queensland, and Ben Topham, Director Invest Brisbane Marketing, discussed the role of Tourism Queensland and the organisation's role within the government and tourism framework.

The Mohammed Bin Rashed Leadership Programme

The Mohammed bin Rashid Programme Leadership Programme was established as a unique "fast track" programme that seeks to identify potential future leaders from Dubai's existing talent pool and provide an integrated programme of learning activities to accelerate their personal development.

The programme functions in different areas and categories such as Government Leaders, Young Leaders and Business Leaders, thus offering a choice of training courses, roundtable seminars and workshops among others.