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INVITATION TO PARTICIPATE
FROM THE PREMIER OF THE STATE OF QUEENSLAND,
AUSTRALIA
The Queensland State Government is proud to
partner with the United Nations in developing
the inaugural International Conference on Engaging
Communities.
It is a great honour that the United Nations
has chosen to work with Queensland in developing
this international event, in recognition of
the State’s reputation as an active democracy
and an innovator in community engagement theory
and practice.
The role of governments across the world is
changing. Globally and locally governments are
being challenged to increase their focus on
more effective community involvement in planning,
decision making and service delivery.
Similarly, the private sector and community
organisations as well as educational institutions,
are under pressure to offer and be responsive
to stakeholder engagement.
The Queensland State Government in Australia
has embraced this challenge and is a leader
in implementing new ways for citizens to participate
in government. With a strong record of innovation
in engaging communities it is fitting that Queensland
-Australia’s Smart State - host this Conference.
This Conference will provide an unparalleled
opportunity for local community engagement and
development practitioners to interact with leading
international thinkers in engaging communities.
While in Queensland presenters and delegates
will be exposed to some of the world’s
innovators in the field and I invite you to
visit our great vast State and experience one
of the world’s most spectacular destinations.
Peter Beattie MP
Premier of Queensland and Minister
for Trade
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INVITATION TO PARTICIPATE
FROM THE UNITED NATIONS
The work of the United Nations has increasingly
become oriented to policy advice and capacity-building
towards the achievement of the Millennium Development
Goals (MDGs).
The United Nations Programme on Public Administration
of the Department of Economic and Social Affairs
is focused, among others on poverty reduction
and improved service delivery. The overall governance
environment, especially elements that contribute
more directly to the planning, budgeting, implementing
and monitoring of public services, needs adjusting,
repositioning to become more engaging. What
are also required are new relationships and
new partnerships.
In recent times, the United Nations has taken
initiatives to debate both the concept as well
as the practical needs of “engaged governance.”
In these debates, the UN is looking for options
and models that can assist in institutionalizing
the concept of citizen-government dialoguing
as a process for policy-making and mainstreaming
the concerns of the poor and the disadvantaged
into the public policy processes.
It is against this backdrop that the United
Nations has welcomed the initiative of the State
Government of Queensland, Australia and is very
pleased to support the International Conference
on Engaging Communities. The UN is particularly
pleased that it is partnering with an institution,
the Government of Queensland, that has given
leadership in engaging communities and citizens
in public policies and processes. We look forward
to learning more from this and other models
of engagements, from across the world.
I therefore join the Premier of Queensland,
Australia in extending the invitation to citizen
groups, academia, government officials, donors
and other stakeholders to participate in this
unique Queensland initiative in August 2005
to learn lessons of experience and advance further
the practice of ‘engaged governance’
for the attainment of the MDGs and the empowerment
of the citizens for good governance.
Mr Guido Bertucci
Director, Division for Public
Administration and Development Management, Department
of Economic & Social Affairs
The United Nations
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