Transparency key to good governance
Politicians have to undertake radical transformation — Mohammad
Transparency is the key to creating clear governance, which responds quickly to people’s needs and at the same time develops the leadership’s vision of where the nation is heading. Officials working with a clear concept of how the government should offer quality service to the people of the country is an essential part of building that transparency.
These two elements of transparency and service were key threads that ran through the Government Summit held over the past two days in Dubai, which was attended by many ministers and government officials, and launched with a key session headed by His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai.
Shaikh Mohammad outlined his vision of how far the UAE should be able to grow in the future and also went out of his way to answer a variety of questions that were put before him from ordinary people through the wide range of social media. He passed some of these questions directly to the ministers for live replies. Looking at the wider Arab region, Shaikh Mohammad was very direct in his insistence that Arab leaders must change with the times. Talking about the political changes in many Arab states, following the Arab Spring, Shaikh Mohammad said: “Change or you will be changed. All politicians have to undertake radical transformation. Otherwise their people will be disenchanted.”
One of the most interesting parts of his address was how he recognised that encouraging “positive energy” was important for the government. This is a very difficult concept to define, but Shaikh Mohammad was clear that government needed to work with the inbuilt attitude that tackling problems with positive attitude can lead to solutions. It is unusual and encouraging to see a leader of a government working to incorporate such an ephemeral virtue into the procedure manuals of the government and it is an important illustration of how the UAE is seeking to make its government service one of the best in the world.
