1. 50th EUPAN DIRECTORS-GENERAL MEETING
FUTURE OF EUPAN Conclusions of working groups MANDATE FOR THE FRENCH PRESIDENCY dr. Aleš Dobnikar Brdo, 29 May 2008

2. Directors-General responsible for Public administration in the European Union, at their 50th meeting in Brdo, on 28 and 29 May 2008:
Acknowledge the informal nature of the European Public Administration Network (EUPAN);
Highly appreciate the initiative of the Slovenian Presidency to launch the discussion on the Future of EUPAN;
Note that additional procedural and organisational adjustments of the Network are needed to enhance its effectiveness and efficiency.

3. Against this background, Directors-General agree that improvement should be achieved in the following areas:
Horizontal coordination and cooperation within EUPAN;
Cooperation with other organisations;
Dissemination of results/Visibility of EUPAN;
Sustainability and continuity of EUPAN.

4. Horizontal coordination and cooperation within EUPAN:
Grouping EUPAN activities around topics:
Thematic learning teams limited in time and mandate,
EUPAN forum of all WGs under each Presidency.
Assessing/evaluating the working groups (mission, structure, results);
No permanent groups (only ad hoc groups, related to MTP topics);
Find a right balance between topics (“learning groups”, LG) and working groups (WG) to ensure continuity.

5. Co-operation with other organisations:
Enhanced co-operation with other organisations like OECD, NISPAcee, World Bank, IIAS, etc.:
Exchange of information, invitation to EUPAN meeting, meeting with secretariat of other organizations;
Common projects, common meetings;
To improve and share knowledge and to avoid overlapping.

6. Dissemination of Results/Visibility of EUPAN
“New breath” for EUPAN website:
Interactive web-site, accessible to public;
Links with national administrations and partners;
Continuously improve EUPAN website;
Improve CIRCA management.
Better use and link with DISPA and QC;
Materials/reports accessible at national level;
Presidency/Troika initiatives on EU - and national level in order to disseminate results.

7. Sustainability and continuity of EUPAN:
Expand TRIO model to all areas of EUPAN;
Explore furthermore the feasibility of establishment of a permanent secretariat.

8. Directors-General invite the forthcoming French Presidency to develop operational solutions and present them at the 51st Directors-General Meeting for approval.