The summer semester at KDI School also marked the launch of the school’s Global Development Learning Network (GDLN) Blended Learning Series.

The program covered lessons on various dimensions of Korea’s E-Government via seven videoconference seminars where participants were able to engage in debates and share their professional experience.

The seminar saw a convergence of KDIS’ faculty members, experts in the field, practitioners and guest speakers share ideas on e-governance over the course of five months.

Thematic areas that were covered included Korea’s Digital Government Experience, Service Government Innovation and E-Government, E-Government for Transparency, The Competent Government in the Age of the Fourth Industrial Revolution, Policy for the Fourth Industrial Revolution and Digital Government Development in Korea and Versatile Leadership.

The seminar series covered lessons on various dimensions of Korea’s E-Government, which was ranked number one in the UN E-Government Survey for three consecutive terms. While drawing from other country experiences, the program highlighted some of Korea’s more notable lessons on the e-Government system.

As a visionary frontier for national agendas, KDI School affirms its belief in the need for knowledge sharing for sustainable development and global prosperity. The GDLN therefore is the appropriate forum to effectively share these experiences and learnings.

Transitioning from an aid recipient to an OECD-DAC donor, Korea has achieved remarkable economic growth, democratization and social stability in less than half a century. With Korea’s extraordinary development widely acknowledged and documented, Korea is in a unique position to share its experiences with emerging and developing countries as a means of furthering global development.

The GDLN Korean Center is committed to providing optimal opportunities for development practitioners all over the world to learn from not only Korea’s development experiences, but also to offer peer-to-peer learning opportunities among participating practitioners.

The objective of the program has been to enhance the role and impact of the GDLN in connecting practitioners, policy-makers, academics, students and facilitators of development; and to provide a multi-dimensional approach to learning about Korea’s development experiences.

The Global Development Learning Network is a unique partnership of over 95 affiliates in more than 62 countries that provides about 1,500 learning and knowledge exchange activities globally each year. Its affiliates design customized learning solutions for those working in development by taking advantage of a large pool of resources. The tools for communication include a combination of face-to-face interactions, e-learning content, and videoconferences.

In 2001, KDI School was designated as the only affiliated Korean center. The GDLN’s vision therefore is to provide integrated educational opportunities on Korea’s development experiences for policy makers and development practitioners around the world through blended learning programs.

Ultimately, the goal has been to connect with policy makers and related institutions of development to effectively contribute to balanced, global development and an enriched development cooperation.

Since its inception, KDI School has cultivated over 3000 professionals from 100 different countries who have led positive change in their respective spheres of influence.

The School has grown exponentially due to its unwavering commitment to excellence in teaching, promoting a truly international learning environment, and by serving as a global hub for knowledge sharing.

By Rosa DALITUICAMA [2017 MDP, Fiji]