The conference on “Public Policy and Good Governance in a Changing World” was held at NU GSPP

09.06.2022

On June 7, 2022, the Nazarbayev University Graduate School of Public Policy (NU GSPP) hosted the sixth annual international conference on “Public Policy and Good Governance in a Changing World”.

A GSPP Committee led by Vice Dean for Research, Prof. Riccardo Pelizzo, organized the Conference in partnership with National University of Singapore’s Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, Astana Civil Service Hub, and Sustainable Development Solutions Network Kazakhstan. Researchers, academics, experts, civil service practitioners, and students from Azerbaijan, Australia, India, Kazakhstan, Korea, Kyrgyzstan, Singapore, and the US participated in the event that was in hybrid format: online and offline.

Welcoming the participants, the Dean of the NU GSPP Weng Tat Hui stressed that this year is the 10th anniversary year of the School that is graduating 100 students in three programs – Master in Public Policy, Master in Public Administration and PhD in Public Policy. The Dean said: “The dividends of good governance have long been recognized within the international academic and policymaking community. Countries with greater political stability, better accountability, improved information sharing, high government effectiveness, good regulatory quality, respect for rule of law, low corruption, and active involvement of civil society groups are all in better position to secure longer term as well as higher quality of life for the citizens. In the case of Central Asia, an important component of governance that has historically been an important contributor to positive socio-economic development.”

There were altogether six panels devoted respectively to People-centered governance, Political instability in Central Asia, Policy Innovations, Environmental sustainability, Governance and reforms, and Political participation and its discontents. While some presentations explored the causes of political instability and the challenges to good governance both regional and locally, other presentations attempted to highlight the policy implications and the challenges to good governance that this rising instability actually entails. Dr. Larry Diamond, Senior Fellow at the Hoover Institution, Stanford University, and Founding Co-editor of the Journal of Democracy participated in the Conference as the keynote speaker. His presentation was on the topic of Global Democratic Recession and Democratic Transitions.

NU GSPP Conference is an annual event that aims to provide attendees of academic and professional political communities with quality educational and networking opportunities focused on various areas of public policy and public administration. It is a communication platform designed for academics, young scholars, practitioners and researchers.