DRAFT*

Report of the Workshop on the Establishment of the Network of Local Government Training and Research Institutes

2-5 March 1999
Asian Institute of Technology
Thailand

Table of contents

Introduction

I. Organization of the Workshop

II. Opening Session

III. Analysis of the questionnaire and programme strategies and priorities

IV. Virtual Policy Studio

V. Institutional and operational modalities of the Network

VI. Relationship with IUAL-ASPAC and other organizations

VII. Charter of the Network

VII. Closing of the Workshop

Annexes

Annex I: List of participants

Annex II: Agenda of the workshop

Annex III: Charter of the Network of Local Government Training and Research Institutes in Asia and the Pacific

Annex IV: Issue papers presented at the workshop

Issue paper 1: Programme strategies of the Network

Issue paper 2: Virtual Policy Studio-an Internet Based Capacity Building Tool

Issue paper 3: Institutional and operational modalities of the Network

Issue paper 4: Profiles of institutes interested in hosting the secretariat of the network

Introduction

Asia and the Pacific is going through an unprecedented economic, social and political transformation caused by rapid urbanization, globalization and liberalization of economies, political liberalization and the advent of the information age. By 2015, 17 of the world's 27 largest cities will be located in Asia. Smaller cities and towns in the region will also experience unprecedented growth. Management of cities, especially large cities and towns will be critical. Local governments will be challenged by the provision of basic services, efficient and affordable transportation and an environment under threat by high population and industrial densities and the poverty of large portions of the population.

Local governments will face new and far more complex urban problems. With large concentrations of population, the need for infrastructure to maintain and improve quality of life will be tremendous. Capital for infrastructure development will have to come from the global capital market in which even the largest city is only a small player. To acquire a sufficient share of international capital investments local governments will have to collaborate intensively with the private sector and civil society to make their city or town attractive to international capital and investment.

Under the forces of economic globalization, a new form of "city-state" is emerging. Roles and responsibilities, which in most countries traditionally have been handled by central government, are now being handed over to local governments, because of the need for faster and more focused responses to local needs and demands. Moreover with market deregulation is resulting in increased involvement by the private sector in the delivery of urban services. Local governments need to develop new forms of partnership or alliances with the private sector and civil society to ensure that the necessary services are delivered and the public interest is protected. This requires a new attitude and culture in the public sector as well as new urban management tools and techniques.

However, local governments have lost much of its credibility as the manager of urban development in the eyes of the general public. As a result, the urban population is increasingly voting against or avoiding the payment of taxes and turning towards the private sector for services. The reduction in public resources for urban development comes at a time when the extent of urban poverty and environmental degradation is increasing and market forces are overwhelming the city. The inability of urban local governments to address these problems further erodes its credibility.

At the same time, greater democratization resulting from political liberalization and access to information technologies in the region, people are becoming better informed and more and more vocal, and are pressurizing local government to make sure that the necessary services are provided. Investors are also closely examining the quality and efficiency of urban systems, both for service delivery and governance, when making decisions on the location of investments. In order to regain its credibility local government has to improve the effectiveness and efficiency of its activities, the transparency of its decision-making and its accountability for its actions.

This requires massive investments in human resources development, institutional reform and attitudinal change among those who are entrusted with governing local authorities. One of the key constraints to this is that those entrusted with enhancing the capacities of local governments, namely local government training and research institutes, themselves lack capacity.

One cost-effective means of building capacities of these institutes is through networking and promoting cooperation among them. Many of these institutes have expertise or experience in a particular field, which others lack. Encouraging advisory services, exchange of staff and information, joint-training workshops, as well as, comparative research and documentation of good and bad practices would go a long way in building their capacities.

Creating networks is often easier than sustaining them. One of the key problems with many networks is that they spend considerable amount of resources on management and determining policy directions rather than on implementing programmes for their members. This usually results in their becoming international or regional clubs where the heads of the member organizations meet regularly to decide policies, which cannot be implemented because of a lack of resources. New information technologies such as e-mail and Internet provide opportunities for low-cost management, exchange of ideas and information, comparative research and distance-based learning.

Consequently, while the overall objective of the Workshop was to establish a network of local government training and research institutions in Asia and the Pacific, the specific objectives were:

1. To discuss regional cooperation and networking among local government training and research institutes in Asia and the Pacific.
2. To discuss and finalize operational and institutional modalities and programme priorities of the Network.
3. To explore the possibility of Internet-based distance learning and training of trainers and local government officials.

I. Organization of the Workshop

The United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) organized the Workshop in collaboration with the Asia Pacific Section of the International Union of Local Authorities (IULA-ASPAC). The Urban Management Centre of the Asian Institute of Technology (UMC-AIT) hosted it. The Government of the Netherlands and UMC-AIT provided funding for the Workshop.

Venue and dates

The Workshop was held at the AIT Centre, Prathumthani, Thailand from 2 to 5 March 1999. The agenda of the Workshop is annexed.

Participation

High level representatives of 20 local government training and research institutes attended the Workshop. The institutes represented were: Institute of Municipal Management (IMM), Centre for Local Government Education and Research of the University of Technology-Sydney (CLG-UTS), Western Sydney Research Institute of the Western Sydney University (WSRI), National Institute of Local Government (NILG), China Training Center for Senior Civil Servants (CTCSCS), Zhejiang Training and Continuing Education Center for Personnel (ZTCECP), All India Institute of Local Self Government (AIILSG), Human Settlements Management Institute (HSMI), the Fire Academy, Environmental Protection and Research Centre (EPRC), Training and Education Agency (TEA), National Institute of Public Administration (INTAN), Local Development Training Academy (LDTA), Urban Development Training Centre (UDTC-LDTA), Local Government Academy (LGA), Local Government Development Foundation (LOGODEF), Korea Research Institute of Local Administration (KRILA), Local Government Management Unit, Ministry of Provincial Councils and Local Government (LGMU), Sri Lanka Institute of Development Administration (SLIDA), Urban Management Centre, Asian Institute of Technology (UMC-AIT). In addition to these representatives of the Continuing Education Centre of the Asian Institute of Technology (CEC-AIT), University of Wales, Cardiff and Centre for Built Environment, International Union of Local Authorities-Asia Pacific Section (IULA-ASPAC), the Regional Network of Local Authorities for the Management of Human Settlements (CITYNET) and the UNCHS/UNDP Urban Management Programme-Asia attended the Workshop. A detailed list of participants is annexed.

II. Opening Session

Professor Yap Kioe Sheng, the Director of the Urban Management Centre of the Asian Institute of Technology in his address welcomed the participants to the Workshop. He outlined the challenges facing local governments and the need for increasing their capacities to meet these. He noted that the Workshop was unique in that it had gathered local government training institutes together for the first time. Earlier attempts at capacity building of local governments in Asia and the Pacific had concentrated on local governments either at the country-level, directly with a particular local government or through networks like CityNet and IULA-ASPAC. While these networks provided important avenues for raising awareness and policy dialogues among local governments, given that there were over five thousand local governments in China alone, the efforts of this approach, particularly for capacity building and human resource development of local governments were rather limited. Perhaps through increasing the capacities of national and sub-national local government training and research institutes would it be possible to address the immense needs of the region.

He pointed out that new information technologies offered a cost-effective means for distance training, comparative research and policy dialogue. With increasing access to Internet and e-mail in the region, distance learning through the Internet had now become feasible and cost effective.

Mr. Endi Rukmo, the Secretary General of the Asia-Pacific Section of the International Union of Local Authorities (IULA-ASPAC) in his address thanked ESCAP and UMC for organizing and hosting the Workshop. He informed the participants that through its Training, Education and Research Committee (TERC) IULA-ASPAC had been concentrating on capacity building of local authorities for some time now. He noted that the proposed network was an intermediary step for achieving the ultimate goal of increasing the capacities of local governments. Therefore mechanisms needed to be developed to constantly assess the needs of local governments. He also stated that the relationship between IULA-ASPAC and the proposed network needed to be determined in the near future, as some of the institutes present were members of TERC. He hoped that eventually the proposed network would serve as TERC of IULA-ASPAC.

Mr. Nibhon Debavalya, the Director of the Population and Rural and Urban Development Division of ESCAP, opened the Workshop. In his opening address he stated that the fact that so many institutes had decided to participate in the Workshop showed that they too had felt a need to establish a network of local government training and research institutions. He agreed with Professor Yap that the task of strengthening capacities was immense and that to accomplish it capacity building of local government training and research institutes was urgently needed. He advised the Workshop that success in this multicultural Workshop depended on the participants' abilities to understand each other's views and to work towards building a consensus.

He thanked UMC, IULA-ASPAC and the Government of the Netherlands for enabling ESCAP to organize the Workshop. Without these partners, ESCAP would have found organizing the Workshop very difficult.

III. Analysis of the questionnaire and programme strategies and priorities

The ESCAP secretariat presented a paper on Programme strategies of the Network, which was based on an analysis of a questionnaire, sent out to 23 institutes, which had been identified by their governments and by IULA-ASPAC. The Workshop discussed programme strategies and determined priorities based on the presentation. The following issues were discussed and agreed upon.

Exchange of information

The Workshop felt that the flow of information and exchange of experience were key components for increasing the capacities of the member institutes. These functions of the Network should strike a balance between minimum cost and maximum coverage. Past experience showed that printed newsletters were not quite effective in disseminating information. Firstly, because of cost constraints the copies printed and posted were limited. Moreover, these were not circulated extensively in the host institution, often remaining in the office of the chief executive officer or some of the higher level officials.

Given the advances in e-mail and the Internet in the Asian and Pacific region, it was agreed that the communication and information exchange strategy of the Network would be undertaken through these media. Responses to the questionnaires indicated that 16 out of 23 institutes (70 per cent) of the institutes had e-mail connections. The responses also indicated that 20 out of 23 had office automation or information technology facilities, which could easily be linked to e-mail and the Internet. The Network would start an e-mail newsletter as soon as possible. The newsletter, similar to one brought out by news wire services, would update members on latest news and issues in the field of local government training, provide information on the programmes of member institutes, a calendar of meetings, etc. Members would send queries, comments and information to be included in the newsletter. Participating institutes would include as many of their staff as possible in the mailing list of the newsletter. Those institutes which did not have access to e-mail, would receive a simple A-4 printed copy of the newsletter until they acquired access to e-mail.

In addition to issuing an e-mail newsletter the Network would maintain a needsresources matching database of participating institutes, based on the database developed by ESCAP. This would facilitate matching needs and resources among the members of the Network. Members would send queries to the secretariat of the Network, which would then match needs with resources and put members in contact with each other. In the year 2000 the Network was expected to establish its own web-site. The main feature of the web-site would be the needs-resources matching data bank of participating institutes so that the members could interact with each other directly, easing the work of the secretariat. The databank would be updated every six months to ensure that it remained relevant. Members without access to Internet would receive biennial printed copies of the database. In addition to the database the web-site would also have links to other web-sites of relevance to the Network members and any other material members may deem necessary.

Training, research and exchange of experience and the use of TCDC modality

Training, research and exchange of experience would be done through various means including Internet-based learning, regional training workshops involving more than one institute, roving national training workshops where experts from one or more institutes conduct similar training programmes either sub-regionally or at a member institute requiring such training, advisory services from one institute to another, exchange of staff etc. Given that the resources at the disposal of the Network would most probably be limited, the Workshop adopted the TCDC (Technical Cooperation among Developing Countries) approach developed by the United Nations system as a cost sharing mechanism. The Workshop decided that under such an approach the Network would defray international costs of participation while the participating institutes would bear all the local costs. The Workshop felt that such a modality was also attractive to donors as they saw cost sharing as a measure of effective demand. Joint or comparative research activities would be undertaken on a similar basis.

Responses to the questionnaire indicated that 21 out of 23 institutes had seminar rooms and 15 out of 23 had dormitory facilities. Access to such facilities would considerably add to the successful implementation of the TCDC modality, as costs for accommodation and food could be substantially reduced.

Programme priorities

Based on the analysis of the questionnaires and the ensuing discussions with selected institutes the secretariat had prepared a list of activities which was divided into four categories, namely: advisory services, training, exchange of experience and information and research. A list of activities was compiled and presented to the Workshop. The list of activities was fairly comprehensive but not exhaustive and participating institutes were asked to add other activities. Before coming to the Workshop, each participating institute was required to hold an internal discussion with institute staff on prioritization of activities. Each institute had to decide:

1. Whether it wanted to add to the list of activities

2. Activities it would like to be involved in

3. The form and contents of these activities

4. Whether it could host any of the activities

5. Whether it could take the lead in designing the activity

6. Whether it could provide resource persons to conduct the activities.

A total of three training workshops and ten advisory services/exchange visits were programmed in the project document, which ESCAP had prepared for funding from the Netherlands. The Workshop decided that two comparative research studies should also be undertaken, within the funding limits of the project document. All of the activities extracted from the questionnaire were put up on notice boards and institutes were required to "sign up" under each of the activities. Activities in each category, which received the largest number of "votes" were deemed as having the greatest priority. In the follow-up discussions these priority activities were programmed and a lead institution was chosen to implement the activity, in consultation with the members who had shown an interest in participating in the activity.

The Workshop decided that the activities chosen needed more articulation and ESCAP agreed to work with the lead institutes to further refine these activities. Moreover the workshop decided that one additional training workshop would be chosen for long distance learning, using the "Virtual Policy Studio" system developed by UMC and University of Wales, Cardiff. The choice was left to ESCAP, UMC-AIT and University of Wales. Table 1 provides the list of activities, the votes received by each activity, the appointed lead institution and the timeframe of the activity.

Table 1: List of activities and their priority

* These two research studies are to be taken in conjunction.

Table 2 provides the lists of advisory services and exchange visits, which have already been agreed to bilaterally between the institutions concerned. The Workshop decided that in addition to the advisory services and exchange visits outlined in Table 2, member institutions could request for advisory services, exchange visits etc. at a later date, subject to the availability of funds.

Table 2: Advisory services and exchange visits already agreed upon

IV. Virtual Policy Studio

UMC-AIT and Cardiff University presented the Virtual Policy Studio (VPS), an Internet Based Capacity Building Tool. VPS brings together local government staff and officials from different levels in an organization, international experts and other participants with a moderator. The VPS is aimed not just at the transfer of knowledge but also at providing skills with a focus on implementation and understanding the requirements for translating knowledge and skills into effective action.

A typical VPS comprises:

• participants drawn from active urban management roles in cities selected by participating institutions
• participating institutions
• a workshop facilitator
• international experts
• a virtual studio providing an Internet-based multi-media platform for individual and group learning, discussion, networking and problem solving.

A VPS is designed to be run both as a virtual short course and as a background resource - an urban managers' club with rooms for a variety of special policy interests. As a short course, a VPS might be run for two weeks, drawing together participants from the groups listed above for a collaborative learning experience. Participants are required to commit time to the VPS during the two weeks and to organize personal access to a multi-media WWW terminal. Participants are guided through on-line study material by a series of individual exercises and the on-line tutor, and learn together and from each other in group problem-solving exercises.

A VPS is like an urban manager's clubhouse or an virtual training centre. It contains:

• a learning resources library
• personal study rooms
• problem solving studios for group exercises
• a networking lounge for getting to know other participants and
• a tutor's office

In addition, different types of participants have their own floor in the VPS 'building' where the personal study rooms, tutors and studio exercises are designed to suit their particular needs.

Participants were given an opportunity to use the VPS through a moderated hands-on workshop. In the subsequent discussion, the Workshop felt that the VPS should be tried out by the Network as one of the training mechanisms. Representatives of UMC-AIT and Cardiff University informed the participants that there were cost implications involved in tailoring the system for a specific training workshop for the Network. The Workshop decided that these should be discussed between UMC-AIT, Cardiff University and ESCAP. If costs were feasible a workshop on one of the topics identified as priority should be organized in 1999.

V. Institutional and operational modalities of the Network

The ESCAP Secretariat presented the issue paper on institutional and operational modalities of the Network. The Workshop noted that past experience had shown that success of regional networks depended on the ability of the networks to articulate the needs and resources of their members and to match them, which to a great extent determined the commitment of the members to the running of the Network. It also depended on keeping overhead costs of such servicing of needs to a minimum and developing modalities which allowed members to interact with each other with relative ease.

It also required strong leadership, which clearly articulated policies and programmes and an efficient secretariat, which not only facilitated communication with members, but also implemented the programmes and policies articulated by the leadership. The Workshop decided that the Network should have a clear vision, an achievable mission and measurable objectives to ensure that its membership and activities remained focused.

Vision, mission and objectives of the Network

The Workshop decided that the vision of the Network would be:

"Effective and efficient local government which can meet the needs and aspirations of its people".

Its mission would be:

"To build the capacities of local government training and research institutes so that these institutes can provide sound technical and managerial training and undertake research."

To achieve the vision and the mission of the Network the objectives of the Network would be:

1. To establish technical co-operation among local government training and research institutes in Asia and the Pacific.

2. To strengthen the institutional and technical capacities of local government training and research institutes in Asia and the Pacific.

Membership

The Workshop decided that the membership of the Network be divided into three categories

• Full members
• Associate members
• Honorary members

Full members

All local government training and research institutes in the Asia and the Pacific region would be eligible to join the Network as full members.

Associate members

Local government training research institutes from outside the Asian and Pacific region, university departments or other institutes, networks and organizations which deal with local governments, human settlements, public administration etc, whose involvement or affiliation with the Network would be to its benefit could join the Network as associate members. The General Council of the Network would have the discretion to admit an institution or an organization as a full or an associate member. The difference between full members and associate members would be that associate members would not be permitted to vote in the election of the officers of the Network.

Honorary members

An honorary membership may be conferred upon individuals who have made distinguished contributions to the Network to the promotion of the vision, mission and objectives of the Network.

Decision making structure of the Network

The Workshop decided that the Network would have the following decision making structure:

• General council
• President/Vice president
• Secretariat

General council

The general council would comprise of all full, associate and honorary members. The general council would meet once either physically or virtually through the electronic media, every year. It could also meet in a special session upon the convocation of the president or one third of its members.

The general council would establish the policies of the Network. It would review and appraise the activities of the Network and its annual work performance, as well as its finances. It would elect the president and the vice president and would select an institution to the secretariat. In addition to the above, the general council would appoint a member, an associate member or an honorary member as the performance auditor of the Network. It could also appoint a person or an organization as an advisor to the Network's secretariat.

President and Vice president

The president of the Network would be the chief executive officer of one of its full members. The general council would appoint a president and a vice president for a period of two years. The president would chair the sessions of the general council and oversee the work of the secretariat. The President could constitute, with the approval of a majority of the members, various committees of the members to oversee the activities of the Network and provide advice on matters of relevance to the Network.

In the absence of the president, or his/her resignation or incapacitation the vice president would assume his/her responsibilities

Secretariat

The Workshop decided that the secretariat of the Network would be hosted by one of its full members. The host member would provide the necessary office space and equipment as well as the salary or the full time services of the Network Coordinator, one professional staff and one secretary/administrative assistant. It could also provide the services of a part time coordinator, supplemented by an additional professional staff member. The Coordinator of the Network could appoint additional staff members, with the approval of the General Council. A member would host the secretariat for a term of four years, subject to a mid-term review by the General Council and the host institution. The General Council could reselect the host of the Secretariat for one additional term only.

The Secretariat would be responsible to the President and the General Council for:

1. The administration of the Network;

2. The implementation of the decisions and the instructions of the General Council and the President;

3. The coordination of any standing committees;

4. The preparations for and servicing of the meetings of the General Council;

5. Regular and frequent communication with members of the General Council;

6. Submission of an annual report on the activities of the Network to the General Council;

7. The preparation of the annual programme of work;

8. Maintenance of financial accounts for annual audits;

9. The submission of annual statements of accounts to the General Council;

10. Submission of annual budget estimates for the forthcoming year to the General Council;

11. Implementation of any other function assigned by the General Council and the President.

Performance auditor

The Workshop decided to develop easy-to-measure performance indicators and establish the position of a performance auditor. The Workshop felt that many networks failed because they did not develop measurable performance indicators at the outset and were thus unable to measure their success, identify their deficiencies and undertake reforms to improve the functioning of the organization. The Workshop also felt that if they were to advocate measurable performance indicators and transparency to local governments, their network should also be held to the same standards.

The General Council would appoint the Performance Auditor from one of its full, or associate members for a period of two years. It could reappoint the Performance Auditor only once. The performance auditor would submit a report to the General Council on the performance of the Network, including the Secretariat, based on performance indicators approved by the General Council. The Workshop agreed that the member institute, which had been appointed as the performance auditor would develop a set of performance indicators and circulate it in the first issue of the e-mail newsletter. Members would discuss the performance indicators and decide to adopt them within one month of their circulation.

Financial and other resources of the Network

The Workshop decided that financial resources of the Network could comprise:

1. Membership fees;

2. Voluntary contributions;

3. Funds from governments, international and national organizations and foundations as well as from the private sector;

4. Income from the sale of services, publications and other materials particularly to non members

5. The Network could also receive contribution of a non-financial nature or "in-kind" services.

ESCAP informed the Workshop that the survey of the participating institutes showed that the average of fees that the members were willing to pay was US$1,150/year. Therefore, the Workshop adopted the following schedule of annual fees:

• Full members: US$ 1,000 per institute per year
• Associate members: US$ 500 per institute per year
• Honorary members (individuals): US$ 100 per person per year

The Workshop requested ESCAP to assist the secretariat of the Network in developing project documents for support of donors either independently or as part of an ESCAP project.

VI. Relationship with IULA-ASPAC and other organizations

The Workshop recognized the importance of establishing a close relationship with IULA-ASPAC and other networks of local governments and NGOs, as well as with international and multilateral organizations, within and outside the United Nations system. However, the Workshop felt that members should discuss such relationships at a later date, when the Network was firmly established, functioning effectively and had something concrete to offer, particularly to local government networks.

VII. Charter of the Network

Drafting and adoption of the Charter

The Workshop constituted a committee comprising LGA, UDTC-LDTA, KRILA, LOGODEF, NILG, CLG-UTS, INTAN and TEA to draft the charter. ESCAP served as the secretary of the committee. The Draft charter was discussed, refined and adopted by the Workshop. The charter is annexed.

Name and acronym of the Network

The charter drafting committee was also assigned the task of suggesting the name and acronym of the Network. The Workshop chose "Network of Local Government Training and Research Institutes in Asia and the Pacific" as the official name of the Network. The Committee could not reach a consensus on an acronym and suggested five acronyms to which participants added two more. As there was no consensus on the acronym a vote was taken and 13 members chose LOGOTRI as the acronym of the Network. The reasons for choosing LOGOTRI were firstly because the acronym spells out local government training and research institutes. Secondly because its pronunciation as "logo tree" signifies the tree of knowledge (logos being the Greek word for knowledge). Thirdly because the tree is the symbol of sustainable growth which benefits humanity. The Workshop decided to organize a competition among its members to design a logo for LOGOTRI, which symbolizes the nature and mission of the Network and its acronym.

Signing of the charter

Representatives of twenty institutes listed below signed the charter of the Network of Local Government Training and Research Institutes (LOGOTRI) and became its founding members.

Australia

Institute of Municipal Management (IMM),

Centre for Local Government Education and Research of the University of Technology-Sydney (CLG-UTS),

Western Sydney Research Institute of the Western Sydney University (WSRI)

Bangladesh

National Institute of Local Government (NILG)

China

China Training Center for Senior Civil Servants (CTCSCS)

Zhejiang Training and Continuing Education Center for Personnel (ZTCECP)

India

All India Institute of Local Self Government (AIILSG)

Human Settlements Management Institute (HSMI)

Fire Academy

Environmental Protection and Research Centre (EPRC)

Indonesia

Training and Education Agency (TEA)

Malaysia

National Institute of Public Administration (INTAN)

Nepal

Local Development Training Academy (LDTA)

Urban Development Training Centre (UDTC-LDTA)

Philippines

Local Government Academy (LGA)

Local Government Development Foundation (LOGODEF)

Republic of Korea

Korea Research Institute of Local Administration (KRILA)

Sri Lanka

Local Government Management Unit, Ministry of Provincial Councils and Local Government (LGMU)

Sri Lanka Institute of Development Administration (SLIDA)

Thailand

Urban Management Centre, Asian Institute of Technology (UMC-AIT), as Associate Member

VII. Closing of the Workshop

The newly elected officers of LOGOTRI presented closing remarks. Dr. Elena Panganiban, Executive Director of LGA, who was elected President, thanked the institutes present for showing their confidence in her and her institute and promised to do her best to make the Network successful. She also thanked ESCAP and UMC-AIT for organizing and hosting the Workshop and getting the Network off the ground. She expressed her hope that the relationships and linkages developed at the Workshop would contribute to building a vibrant and sustainable network.

Mr. Chang Dongquan, the Deputy Director-General, China Training Center for Senior Civil Servants, on behalf of his Director General thanked the members of LOGOTRI for electing the Director General of his Center as the Vice President. He assured members that his Center would work diligently to make the Network successful.

Mr. G. P. Gorkhaly, the Principal of UDTC-LDTA, as the Coordinator and host of the Secretariat thanked members for showing confidence in UDTC-LDTA for accepting its offer to host the secretariat. He said that as Coordinator of LOGOTRI he would work ceaselessly to make the Network successful. He reiterated remarks made earlier that the Network's success to a large extent depended on the interest its members took in it. He requested members to help and guide him in running the secretariat and coordinating the Network's activities.

Mr. Robert Mellor, the Manager, Special Projects, CLG-UTS, who was appointed as the Performance Auditor thanked the members for appointing him and informed them that he would soon develop performance indicators and forward them to the secretariat for circulation to all members. He expressed his hope that performance audit reports would not be construed as criticism of any sort but rather as opportunities for improvement and growth.

In his closing remarks the representative of ESCAP congratulated the members present for establishing the Network and noted the appropriateness of the Network's acronym, LOGOTRI. He stated that ESCAP had planted the sapling. Its growth into a tree, which would be beneficial to all was up to the members. He also thanked UMC-AIT for hosting the Workshop and IULA-ASPAC for cooperating in its organization. He expressed his opinion that in the near future IULA-ASPAC and LOGOTRI will evolve a symbiotic relationship.

* This report is issued as draft working paper and has not been formally edited.

* The designations employed and the presentation of the material in this publication do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of the Secretariat of the United Nations concerning the legal status of any county, territory, city or area or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries.