The KDI School in conjunction with the Central Officials Training Institute (COTI), held a four-day seminar between August 21st and the 24th, with a further day for sports activities on October 12^th. They turned out to be four days filled with educative presentations, meaningful interaction, and a change of perspective for the Korean civil service.

For the KDI students, the seminars offered a chance to not only learn about various aspects of the Korean civil service but to interact with new deputy directors in various ministries. It was a privilege to be among these young officials in whose hands the government policies would be shaped in the future.

The first lecture was by Mr. Kyung Bae Park who elaborated on public human capital training in Korea. Mr. Park used his extensive experience to show the importance of public officials were in achieving government objectives. His lecture explored the role of COTI and presented participants with a detailed analysis of its inner workings. He illustrated sometimes hilariously strategies the COTI has employed to ensure it achieved its vision of training officials who think fast, big, and fair.

The afternoon lecture did not disappoint either. It was delivered by Dr. Pan Suk Kim, an eminent public administration scholar as well as the current and first ever Korean president of the International Institute of Administrative Sciences based in Brussels, Belgium. His lecture transcended national boundaries as he showed that governance problems were common to all countries with only marginal differences. He demonstrated the reasons why “one-size-fits-all” approaches had failed in the past and challenged participants to come up with home grown solutions tailored to the unique challenges their countries face.

Once the lecture was dispensed with, time was allocated for group discussions on various governance questions generally aimed at coming up with measures to enhance good governance. The groups also offered a further opportunity for interaction between international students and their Korean counter-parts.

The following day was taken up by community work organized according to the groups though this time with most groups split into even smaller components. The groups visited several community service places such as homes for the old and homes for the disabled. Helping the disabled with their work was extremely satisfying beyond words.

Thursday saw a resumption of the series of lectures, this time at KDI School. By this time it was clear to see that the groups were slowly integrating with the initial uneasiness between Korean and International participants dissipating. The first lecture was on Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) by Professor Seung-Joo Lee, a member of the KDI faculty. In the lecture he showed how important FDI was in achieving development as well as the various types of FDI. Once again, the participants broke into the designated groups to discuss their allocated questions and returned to present before breaking for lunch.

The afternoon was taken up by another lecture thus time by Dr Joo Dong-Joo a research fellow at Korea Institute for Industrial Economics and Trade, a sister institute to KDI. In this lecture he elucidated on the different types of Official Development Assistance (ODA) and showed how Korea was increasingly occupying a prominent role in this area. Dr Joo also showed the historical trends of ODA and how Korea has moved from recipient of ODA to donor.

Friday was by far the most exciting of the four day sessions. The morning began with a lecture on leadership by KDI School’s own, Professor Changyong Choi. He challenged participants to portray leadership in their different areas of expertise. He demonstrated how it was left to the people attending the seminar to make a difference in the world by leading exemplary lives and showing the leadership values needed to meet the challenges of our time.

The afternoon had different theatrical and musical performances by the groups in the KAIST hall. Some groups tried their skills at Acappella, while others flexed their dancing skills. The show was however stolen by the drummers with some KDI School students displaying great skill in mastering the Korean traditional drums. The performances finished, we all retired to the seventh floor for some snacks and drinks in an informal relaxed atmosphere. I sought the views of the participants who all were unanimous in attesting to the fact that this was a successful blend of serious lecture and fun activities that will live long in their memories.

October 12th brought everything to a climax through the sports day. And while some KDI School students did not attend due to school commitments, those that did, enjoyed the different games on offer.

By Keith Hamusute (MPP 2012 Zambia)