ASTANA – Representatives of Kazakhstan’s Agency for Civil Service Affairs and the Presidential Administration, as well as journalists covering civil service reform issues, visited Brussels and Paris from June 23-27 on a study visit organised with the support of the EU project, Civil Service Reform and Modernisation of the Government of Kazakhstan. The tour included a series of meetings with key European public institutions, including the European Parliament and the European Commission, as well as visits to mass media outlets.
During a meeting at the Information Technology Department of the EU Commission in Brussels, the parties exchanged views on the effective application of information systems in human resource management and personnel selection. During a meeting at the European Office for Personnel Selection, they also discussed the implementation of the newest recruitment tools for civil service and talent management. “There are some processes that are particular to theapproaches and mechanisms of European Commission staff selection procedures. But the aim and tasks assigned are common to both of us. This process of experiences exchange was very useful for us,” said Deputy Chairman of the Agency for Civil Service Affairs of Kazakhstan Ali Komekbayev.
Prospects for technical cooperation between Kazakhstan and the EU in the civil service sphere were discussed during a visit to the Development and Cooperation-EuropeAid office. At the meeting, Kazakhstan was assessed as a dynamically developing country in the Central Asian region and the issue of moving to a qualitatively new level of cooperation between Kazakhstan and the EU was discussed.
The European representatives expressed interest in Kazakhstan’s civil service experience, including the operation of the Regional Hub of Civil Service in Astana, which is intended to create a base for the exchange of relevant experience between the countries of Central Asia and the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS). It was noted that this initiative is important not only for Kazakhstan, but also for the EU.
“Since the best practices in the field of civil service will be expanded through Kazakhstan to other Central Asian states, it will positively affect the relations of countries in the region and it can serve as a tool to maintain stability and peace,” said George Mirogiyannis, team leader of the Civil Service Reform and Modernisation of the Government of Kazakhstan project.
Cooperation issues between state authorities and mass media and mechanisms to secure public control and transparency of government bodies were raised during the group’s visit to the Unit of Media Services and Monitoring of the European Parliament.
The visit to EuroparlTV, the European Parliament’s television station, and the meeting organised there for media professionals were of particular interest to the Kazakh delegation. Kazakh journalists were selected for the visit through a creativity contest conducted by the EU project last year.
In Paris, study tour participants visited the National School of Public Administration (ENA), the Auditing Chamber and the State Council of France. Journalists visited the editorial office of the French newspaper Le Figaro as well as Channel 3 television, where the role and the importance of mass media in civil service reform were discussed.
The Civil Service Reform and Modernisation of the Government of Kazakhstan project is an international initiative to integrate the European experience of state governance into Kazakhstan. The main purpose of the project is to enhance and build the institutional capacity in human resource management of Kazakhstan’s Agency for Civil Service Affairs and Academy of Public Administration under the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan.
