Showing itself to be a regional leader for in-service
training and capacity building, AIT's continuing education center
AIT Extension recently conducted a two-day
seminar on Work Ethics in Public Service in Male, the Republic of
Maldives. The training was requested by the Governance Reform
Unit of the President’s Office (formerly known as the Public Service
Division (PSD)) of the Republic of the Maldives to
tackle gaps existing between the current civil service
community and ongoing changes sought by the new
government.
AIT Extension
also conducted a training on Leadership in the Maldives from 2- 3
July 2008. These initiatives were supported by the Commonwealth of
Nations.
AIT consultant Michael
Lowe addresses the class made up of
high-ranking government officials from Male.
A total of 44 high-ranking participants comprised of state
ministers, deputy ministers, permanent secretaries and other senior
public officials attended the sessions from 4-5 March 2009.
The design of the
seminar followed andragogical (adult education) principles in
which discussions and interactions were conducted
in both plenary and small group formats. This ensured that all
participants had the opportunity to contribute ideas, concerns and
experiences. Some key discussions involved topics such as transparency,
accountability, conflicts of interest, public scrutiny and
corruption.
(L-R) Mr. Michael Lowe,
H.E. the President of the Republic of
Maldives,
Mr. Mohamed Nasheed and Mr. Bahul Shrestha
discuss outcomes.
After the seminar,
the AIT Extension team, composed of consultant Mr. Michael Lowe
and program officer Mr. Bahul Shrestha, was requested to brief
H.E. the President of the Republic of Maldives, Mr. Mohamed
Nasheed on the outcomes of the training.
The President said the exercise was a significant step in
establishing good ties within the current government in order to move
forward. He said he realizes the need to change the mindset of
civil servants on public accountability. Previously, since Maldives
gained independence in 1965, sole accountability for
governance rested with the President alone, he said.
H.E. Mr. Mohamed Nasheed said that the people of Maldives are
now looking forward to the implementation of structures and programs
his government has put together. Decentralization, forging
public-private partnerships and boosting the private sector are some
economic changes that the President wants to pursue. In Maldives,
many public servants view these ideas as unfamiliar and even
radical. The President has emphasized the challenge of
establishing an affordable civil service while at the same time
reinventing the way the government functions.
The meeting concluded
with President Mohamed Nasheed saying that potential
partnerships on capacity building with AIT Extension would
be fully explored in the future.