Panel session on the development of civil service institutions, civil servants' motivation and the digital transformation of governments of European and Asian countries was held in Minsk

On October 22-23, the Astana Civil Service Hub jointly with the Academy of Public Administration under the aegis of the President of the Republic of Belarus and the Council of Europe held the International scientific and practical conference “Сivil Service: current state and prospects of development” in Minsk. The conference was attended by heads and representatives of state bodies and international organizations, experts and academics from 20 countries of Europe and Asia, 11 of which are ACSH participating countries.

The conference was opened by the Rector of the Academy of Public Administration under the aegis of the President of the Republic of Belarus Mr. Henadzi Palchyk, who expressed gratitude to the co-organizers of the conference and wished the participants fruitful work.

In his welcoming speech Mr. Alikhan Baimenov, Chairman of the ACSH Steering Committee, noted that the quality of civil service is a key factor in the effectiveness of governments, and therefore its improvement is on all governments' agenda. Mr. Baimenov also emphasized that there is no universal model that would be acceptable for any country without taking into account the features of their development. Nevertheless, in their decisions governments appreciate global trends and experience gained by countries, including the ACSH participating countries. 

During the panel session the Head of the Civil Service in Poland Mr. Dobrosław Dowiat-Urbański, spoke about the organization of the legislative process in the public administration of Poland and highlighted the special role of the state bodies involved in conducting public consultations and determining the opinions of regulatory project experts in certain categories of issues.

 Deputy Head of the National Agency of Ukraine on Civil Service Mr. Andrii Zabolotnyi intruduced the successes of Ukraine in reforming the civil service. Meanwhile the First Deputy Minister of Labor and Social Protection of the Republic of Belarus Mr. Andrei Lobovich has touched on issues of the remuneration system in the civil service in Belarus. A comparative review of the remuneration system in the civil service of the countries of the region was also devoted to the presentation of Mr. Panos Liverakos, member of the ACSH Advisory Board. The significant contribution to the discussion was also made by participants from Azerbaijan, Belarus, Belgium, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Estonia.

Client Relations Manager of the Federal Public Service Policy and Support (BOSA) of the Kingdom of Belgium Ms. Katleen Vermeire addressed important issues in the selection process focused on competency-based screening and evaluations of Belgian civil servants.

Vice-Rector for Academic Affairs and Educational Innovations of Belarusian State University Ms. Olga Chupris, Head of Department of HR Management of the Civil Service Bureau of Georgia Ms. Gvantsa Beselia, Head of Legal Provision and Human Resources Department of the State Examination Center of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ms. Narmina Bayramova, Head of the Department of the State Personnel Service of the Kyzgiz Republic Ms. Alymkulova and Head of the Civil Service Office of the Civil Service Department of the Agency of the Republic of Kazakhstan for Civil Service Affairs Mr. Kuandyk Aitakyn shared also their countries' experience in civil service reforms.

The achievements and challenges in the field of electronic government were presented by Mr. Virgo Riispapp, Leading Expert in e-Governance from Estonia and Mr. Timur Jambеrbayev, Head of the Public Services Improvement Department of the Ministry of Digital Development, Innovations and Aerospace Industry, Republic of Kazakhstan.  

During the session participants had the opportunity to share the experience of reform and get acquainted with the progress and prospects of the development of public service in the countries of the region.

On the ground of the Conference Mr. Baimenov, Chairman of the ACSH Steering Committee, held bilateral meetings with Mr. Dowiat-Urbański, Head of the Civil Service of Poland, Mr. Zabolotnyi Deputy Head of the National Agency of Ukraine of the Civil Service, as well as with Mr. Qesku, Senior Project Manager, Council of Europe office in Tirana, Ms. Vermeire and Ms. Santos de Oliveira, Senior Relations Managers of the BOSA. During the meetings the parties discussed the possibility of strenghtening cooperation through collaboration of joint activities.

All materials and photos will be available via following link.