The Head of State hands over the President of Paraguay the Global Award for the Most Developed Governments

DUBAI, 4th February, 2018 (WAM) – His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President of the State, may God protect him, handed over to His Excellency Santiago Peña Palacios, President of the Republic of Paraguay, the World Award for Most Advanced Governments, one of the highest awards of the World Government Summit, as part of the summit activities held in Dubai during the period from 3 to 5 February, with high-level global participation.

His Highness congratulated His Excellency President Santiago Peña Palacios on the occasion of the well-deserved honor of the World Award for the Most Developed Governments, wishing Paraguay and all countries of the world further progress in serving their societies and enhancing their prosperity and progress.

His Highness the President stressed that the development of governments and their ability to keep pace with rapid transformations and enhance their readiness for the future, and establishing a work system that adopts efficiency, excellence, innovation and proactiveness represents a vital priority for countries seeking to make a positive impact on the lives of societies and ensure a better future for their coming generations.

His Highness said that the World Government Summit embodies the visions and directions of the UAE to provide an international platform for dialogue, partnerships, exchange of knowledge and experiences, and celebrate the most distinguished government experiences in the world, in addition to benefiting from innovative models that have brought about qualitative shifts in the reality and future of peoples.

The award ceremony was attended by Her Highness Sheikha Latifa bint Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Chairwoman of the Dubai Culture and Arts Authority, and a number of sheikhs, ministers, senior officials, leaders of countries and their representatives participating in the “World Government Summit 2026.”

The Global Award for Most Advanced Governments celebrates countries that establish leading global standards in the quality of governance, transparency, sustainable development, and digital government, through a carefully selected set of international indicators that highlight national excellence in reform and innovation paths.

In evaluating nominations for the award, the World Government Summit relies on measuring economic progress, the strength of governance systems, the effectiveness of institutions, and the quality of development-oriented political decision-making. The evaluation process is carried out in cooperation with the knowledge partner Ernst & Young. The evaluation criteria include re-evaluating the effectiveness, innovation, impact, and sustainability of government sector reform initiatives, through main axes that include transparency and accountability, by measuring the extent to which reform supports the national strategic agenda and its contribution to shaping the future of governance, compatibility with national priorities and sustainable development goals, and clarity. The long-term vision and the policies that are based on it, in addition to enhancing the government’s flexibility, competitiveness, and focus on the needs of the citizen.

The standards also include the digital transformation axis, which focuses on measuring the level of originality and the transformative nature of the reform in rethinking government operations or methods of providing services, including the novelty of the idea or approach or the use of modern technologies, and the level of transformation achieved, whether structural, procedural, digital, or cultural, in addition to the presence of forward-looking, innovative, or experimental governance practices.

The governance axis evaluates the strength and effectiveness of implementation processes, governance models, and coordination mechanisms among stakeholders, including clarity of frameworks, definition of responsibilities and accountability, effectiveness of cooperation between government agencies and other sectors, change management, leadership commitment, and institutional capacity building.

The award also measures the level of development and self-improvement, by evaluating measurable results and the extent to which reform has contributed to achieving tangible value, such as measurable improvement in performance in terms of efficiency, quality, ease of access and cost rationalization, enhancing citizen satisfaction, confidence and inclusion in services and policies, and the long-term systemic impact on governance or national development. The award evaluates contributions to the integrated system by measuring the long-term sustainability of reform and its applicability or replication, consolidating policies and procedures within institutional structures, and financial sustainability. Operational, and the ability to replicate or expand the experiment at the regional, national or international levels.

The standards also include the citizen-centered innovation axis, which measures the level of inclusion and transparency in the reform process, the depth of citizens’ participation and the integration of their opinions and observations into decision-making, partnership with the private sector, academia, and civil society organizations, in addition to the availability of effective mechanisms for transparency and communication.

The World Government Summit represents an incubator and stimulating environment for government innovation, and a platform for celebrating the exceptional achievements of government leaders, entities and initiatives around the world, through the World Government Summit Awards, which celebrate the best minister, the best teacher, the best technological solutions, creative innovations, experiences that enhance readiness for the future, and practices and projects that support sustainability, in translation of its mission aimed at disseminating and disseminating government knowledge and celebrating the most distinguished models of government work.

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