E-Government Seoul Communique

19-nation representatives at the High-Level Round Table of 2012 Global Forum on e-Government, which was held in Seoul from October 18-19, 2012, adopted Seoul Communiqué as follows:

Background
We have reached a consensus on the need for international cooperation for the realization of Smart e-Government for a better future at the e-Government Global Forum held in Seoul, the Republic of Korea, from October 18 to October 19, 2012.

The countries participating in the forum, therefore, hereby declare that they have come to an agreement on the following action plans and will collaborate to carry them out successfully.

Core Values pursued by e-Governments
The world is now faced with a range of challenges such as economic growth, environmental issues, population aging and the development of new technologies. All the countries in the world are constantly being prompted to become more creative, efficient and transparent in terms of public administration.

Built upon such pivotal values as participation, sharing and openness, e-Government is the most effective way of running a country's public services, as it is capable of dealing with various social issues and improving the quality of life of its people most efficiently. Not only does e-Government provide transparent and effective public services but it also encourages people to participate in policy making.

In the long term, it enhances convenience in people's daily life and contributes to the realization of democracy as well.

Action Plans for the Countries' Development of e-Government
The countries participating in the forum will take the following measures in order to realize the core values of e-Government:

First, the participant countries will build an international cooperative network to share the diverse experiences and information they acquired during the process of establishing an e-Government, seek the development of their respective e-Governments, and ultimately do their best to realize high-level e-Government all around the world. Secondly, developed countries or countries with strong e-Government backgrounds will work together in a concerted manner to eliminate the information gap between nations through policy and technology support, capability enhancement support and human exchanges in order to help developing or underdeveloped countries to develop or stabilize their e-Government. Thirdly, international organizations will strive to play strong leadership roles in the international community by helping each country to develop the policies and technologies needed for the development of e-Government and by offering the countries the necessary financial assistance, since they embraces many member countries and exerts a strong influence on e-Government policies in the international community.

Follow-up Actions
In order to realize e-Government for a better future on the basis of constant sharing of our e-Government development experiences and mutual cooperation, the countries participating in the forum have agreed as follows:

The countries will hold the e-Government Global Forum annually to share and distribute their e-Government development experiences and to promote building a 'Global CIO Network' participated in by the participants in the forum and international organizations.

This declaration is adopted in Seoul, the Republic of Korea, on this date, October 19, 2012.