Abstract
George Santayana's conviction that: ‘The Difficult is that which can be done immediately, the Impossible, that which takes a little longer’ could, or maybe should, guide the actions of the Institute. Sometimes it really seems as though this assertion is particularly pertinent for the great IIAS family since its projects are so numerous and sometimes seem so complex. Since the publication of the last Chronicle which appeared in Issue 2 of June 2012, numerous events of major importance have marked the end of spring and summer.
An important delegation from IIAS and IASIA participated in the Committee of Experts in Public Administration (CEPA) at the UN headquarters in New York. Various meetings were held in New York, in parallel. Worth mentioning is the meeting of the partners in UNPAN as well as a combined UNDESA–IASIA ‘taskforce’ relating to the strengthening of public administration and leadership at local level (a second session was organized as part of the annual conference of IASIA in July 2012).
Then, at the beginning of May, the first regional conference of the Asian Group for Public Administration (AGPA) of IIAS took place in the Maldives. The theme was ‘Local Governance and Reform: Service Delivery, Transparency and Accountability’. This regional conference was opened by the President of the Islamic Republic of the Maldives in the presence of numerous dignitaries from the region and from AGPA, as well as the President of IIAS, Mr Pan Suk Kim, Mr Wu, Vice-President of IIAS and coordinator of AGPA, as well as the undersigned, the Director General of IIAS.
Two weeks later, from 23 to 26 May 2012, IIAS, IASIA and EGPA met in Ohrid (Macedonia) for the annual conference of NISPAcee which marked the 20th anniversary of this international member organization of the Institute. On this occasion, two panels were organized by the entities of the Institute: the first panel was set up by EGPA and the second jointly by IIAS and IASIA. The general theme of the conference was ‘Public Administration East and West: Twenty Years of Development’.
EGPA organized its 8th transatlantic dialogue (TAD), in collaboration with ASPA. This took place at Radboud University in Nijmegen, Netherlands, from 7 to 9 June 2012 on the theme of ‘Transitions in Governance’. Taco Brandsen (Radboud University, Nijmegen) and Patria de Lancer Julnes (University of Baltimore) introduced the theme of this 8th TAD which was attended by 95 participants from both sides of the Atlantic. Sven Steinmo (European University Institute) and Theodore R. Marmor (Yale University) launched the debates with their preliminary discussions which incited numerous questions and discussions from the participants. The contributors then met in six workshops to discuss such diverse themes as: ‘New Public Governance: complex systems and networks’, ‘Leadership: qualities, perceptions and actions’, as well as ‘Multiple partners at multiple levels: multi level governance’.
From 18 to 22 June, IIAS, in collaboration with the Instituto Nacional de Administracion Pùblica (INAP), organised its annual congress in Mérida, Yucatán (Mexico) on the main theme of ‘Socioeconomic Priorities and Public Administration’ and three sub-themes: 1. Democratic governance for socioeconomic development; 2. E-Government, instrument to strengthen trust; 3. Public value, the case of tourism. These sub-themes were specifically dealt with during the political platforms. We should mention here that, for the first time, the call for papers dealt not only with the general theme and the sub-themes, but there was also an open call. This call was directed at those authors who wished to make a presentation which, while on the subject of public administration or administrative sciences, did not deal specifically with the themes chosen for the congress. This experience proved to be positive and it was decided to repeat the experiment at the next Congress in Bahrain. We should add that the traditional Braibant conference was delivered by Bernardo Kliksberg (Argentina), Special Advisor to the United Nations and to various other international organizations. This Congress, which attracted a record number of 700 participants, took a particular form in the sense that it covered three events at the same time. The IIAS Congress, the Regional Conference of the Latin-American Group for Public Administration (LAGPA) and the annual conference of INAP of Mexico.
The annual IASIA 2012 conference took place from 16 to 21 July in Bangkok, at the National Institute for Development Administration (NIDA), one of the most prestigious Universities in Thailand. The event – which attracted 240 participants from all over the world – concentrated on the theme of ‘Local governance and development in the 21st century’.
IASIA was delighted to play host to numerous international participants – both academics and practitioners – who discussed the global challenges facing local administration, the strengthening of the capacities of local development and the challenges facing central governance as well as the challenges for central governments and local governance. The participants also focused on the notion of the Developmental State and the repercussions for local administrations on the global scale. In addition, education and training for the public services and the challenges faced by schools and institutions was also central to the debates.
More specific aspects were developed during the meetings of IASIA's eight working groups. The conference was also the occasion to announce the establishment of a ninth permanent working group called ‘Diversity and Gender in the Public Service’.
Finally, we wish to announce that during the last meeting of the Board of Management, which took place on 20 July 2012 in Bangkok, Professor Valeria Termini announced her retirement from the position of President of IASIA. In accordance with the statutes and regulations of IASIA, and following the approval of the Board of Management of IASIA, Professor Michiel S. de Vries of the Department of Public Administration, School of Management, Radboud University, the Netherlands, was elected as the new President of IASIA until the next election which will take place in 2013.
From 19 to 22 August, the National Congress of the Institute of Public Administration of Canada (IPAC) was held in St John's, NL (Canada) on the theme ‘Navigating Uncharted Waters: Embracing the Tides of Change’. The undersigned was invited and thus was able to take part in the debates as well as participate in the Council of Administration.
EGPA's Annual Conference 2012 took place in Bergen, Norway, from 5 to 8 September 2012. More than 450 participants contributed to the various sessions organized by the 19 permanent study groups. More than 320 papers were presented during the workshops organised on the themes of the study Groups. During the opening session, Professor Werner Jann presented an enlightening and stimulating discourse on the theme: ‘Wicked problems and contested administration. Why government organization matters’. The conference was preceded, as usual, by the Symposium for PhD students and young researchers on 3-4 September 2012. The doctoral candidates, 26 in all, presented their research framework and the first results of their doctoral theses both in plenary sessions and in workshops held in parallel. During the conference, a French-speaking seminar was also organized, with great success, on the theme:
A week later, and for the first time, the Institute was invited to participate in the International congress of the Institute of Public Administration Australia (IPAA) which met in Melbourne from 18 to 20 September on the general theme of ‘Valuing Public Administration’. The President of PRAC, Professor Geert Bouckaert, and the undersigned were invited to speak and so had the opportunity of contributing to the various sessions. It should be noted that over 1000 public administrators from all over Australia as well as participants from the USA, Canada and Europe, attended this Congress.
Another spearhead of EGPA's activities, the Fifth Euro-Mediterranean Public Management Dialogue (MED 5) took place in Jordan (Amman and the Dead Sea) from 25 to 27 September 2012 on the following theme: ‘Education and training: The political and public management challenges for developing skills’.
Several thematic workshops discussed these problems from various angles and points of view. A doctoral workshop met on 25 September at the NIT (the National Institute for Training). Young researchers from the Euro-Mediterranean zone presented their work in progress.
This dialogue was organized jointly by the European Group for Public Administration (EGPA) and the European Training Foundation (ETF) in the context of an important regional conference. Political decision-makers, practitioners, researchers, representatives of civil society (notably social partners) and young people from neighbouring countries, the European Union and international organizations met to examine the new challenges for the development of skills in the Arab States of the Mediterranean region. The discussions dealt with the political analysis of education and professional training and on recent research concentrating on Public Administration as well as the shared experiences of the players from the European Union and the international community.
At the time of writing, a joint conference, co-organised by CAG and IASIA
The discussions concerned three main themes: ‘The construction of service-oriented government: international experiences and practice in China’; ‘Performance evaluation: international experiences and practice in China’ and ‘Common challenges for government self-reform’.
Before closing, we wish to point out that the vacancy for the post of Chief Editor of the International Review of Administrative Sciences Administratives (IRAS) was advertised on 4 November 2012 and that the deadline for applications is 2 January 2013. The profile required, the necessary skills, and other useful information can be found on the Institute's website (www.iias-iisa.org).
So there is the news and information we have for you in this, the final Chronicle of the year. We hope you have found it interesting reading. It is with this in mind that we wish you, in advance, a happy end to your year.