GLOBAL LEADERS TO MEET AT SIXTH GLOBAL FORUM ON REINVENTING GOVERNMENT,

IN SEOUL, REPUBLIC OF KOREA, 24 - 27 MAY

High-Level Meeting to Focus on Participation, Transparency in Governance as

State Accountability, Corruption, Efficiency Concerns Climb High on Global Agendas

NEW YORK, 18 May -- State leaders, ministers, senior officials and members of corporate and civil society will convene in Seoul later this month at a four-day meeting to discuss challenges and strategies for improving governance and public administration.  The Sixth Global Forum on Reinventing Government, hosted by the Republic of Korea in cooperation with the United Nations, will be held for the first time in the Asia-Pacific region from 24 to 27 May and will be one of the largest gatherings on governance issues.

More than 5,000 participants from 130 countries will attend the forum at the Convention and Exhibition Centre in Seoul, including Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, President of Brazil; Roh Moo-Hyun, President of the Republic of Korea; Emomali Rahmonov, President of Tajikistan; Hamid Reza Baradaran-Shoraka, Vice-President  of Iran; Ali M. Shein, Vice-President of the United Republic of Tanzania; Lee Hae-chan, Prime Minister of the Republic of Korea; Macky Sall, Prime Minister of Senegal; Mahinda Rajapakse, Prime Minister of Sri Lanka; Thaksin Shinawatra, Prime Minister of Thailand; Bob Hawke, former Prime Minister of Australia; Wim Kok, former Prime Minister of the Netherlands; Donald J. Johnston, Secretary-General, Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development; and José Antonio Ocampo, Under-Secretary-General for Economic and Social Affairs, United Nations.

Globalization, democratization and growing demands of citizens for greater equity, quality of services and economic development are pressuring governments to restructure the role of the State to improve the effectiveness and efficiency of their policies.  Over the last few years, action on good governance issues have taken on increasing urgency since it is judged critical in implementing the goals of the United Nations Millennium Declaration.

The Global Forum provides an important platform for governments and key stakeholders to address these challenges, exchange views on viable options, and explore practical approaches and experiences for governance reform.

“This event serves to remind the international community of the importance of rethinking and reinventing governance structures and public administration in reaching sustainable human development, for the long term”, said United Nations Under-Secretary-General José Antonio Ocampo. “More immediate is acknowledging the importance of the contribution that increasing the participation and transparency in governance can make towards achieving the Millennium Development Goals.”

Discussions in the first two days will be organized into five plenary sessions and two ministerial round tables on innovation.  This will be followed by nine capacity-building workshops, organized by the United Nations Division for Public Administration and Development Management, in partnership with entities of the United Nations system on issues of effective governance and strategies to achieve just and prosperous societies.  Regional cooperation and partnerships between governments, private sector and civil society are likely to be highlighted in the workshops.

A statement -- “The Seoul Declaration” -- is expected to be issued by attending dignitaries at the closing ceremony on 27 May, the final day of the Global Forum.

For more information on the Global Forum or to arrange interviews with United Nations officials, please contact Elia Yi Armstrong, UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs, tel: +1-212-963-2926, e-mail: armstronge@un.org, and after 18 May in Seoul, cell: +82+10-2233-4219; or Oisika Chakrabarti, UN Department of Public Information, tel: +1-212-963-8264, e-mail: mediainfo@un.org

For background conference materials and media accreditation questions, please visit: http://6thglobalforum.org or http://6thglobalforum.org/eng/registration/online_reg_media.asp.

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