Global business leaders discussed Friday ways to promote cooperation between the public and the private sector and expand citizens’ participation in the Seoul city government’s policymaking and development projects.

Under the theme “Seoul as a role model in triple partnership: business, government and citizens” brought by a liberal-minded Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon, key business figures from around the world offered solutions for the country’s capital aiming to become a city full of creativity and social integration.

“The administration of the 21st century cannot be done by itself but through cooperation by all of us including civic groups, grass-root communities, political parties and businesses,” Park said at an annual meeting of the Seoul International Business Advisory Council held at the newly-opened Seoul City Hall.

The mayor added that he would encourage complete information sharing to expand participation from the private sector and citizens in the policymaking process.

Launched in 2001, SIBAC is an advisory counsel consisted of global business leaders around the world. The counseling body provides advice to the Seoul mayor on issues ranging from economy, society, culture, infrastructure to many others.

The SIBAC board members include the 4th chairman Dominic Barton, global managing director at management consultancy McKinsey & Company and vice chairmen Richard Smith, president of Pinkerton Foundation and Nobuyuki Koga, chairman of the board of Nomura Holdings. Other council members also include Roland Busch, CEO of Infrastructure & Cities Sector at Siemens AG, Christopher Forbes, vice chairman of Forbes and Nicholas Walsh, vice chairman of Chartis International.

Introducing New York’s experience of establishing the Center for Economic Opportunity to boost a public and private partnership, Smith said a similar attempt would help the megacity government encourage innovation to move forward.

“The goal is simply to suggest that true innovation sometimes comes only when traditional mechanisms are bypassed, co-opted or steam-rollered ― and that every avenue for change should be explored,” he said

To make Seoul more sustainable city, Nobuyuki Koga, chairman of the board of Nomura Holdings, said the public sector should work with private sector and citizens from planning and development of city development projects.

“It is the time to introduce a ‘Public-Private joint urban development method’ for the renewal of urban areas,” he said.

Collecting a wide range of information through the use of technology will help the government understand the citizens’ demand and also draw more active participation from the people.

“Technology and the use of large-scale data sets are playing an ever-increasing role in better understanding and involving citizens both in special planning efforts as well as in ongoing implementation initiatives,” Barton said.

Walsh, however, warned that the tripartite cooperation was not a perfect solution because the multi-partners would have to deal with “significant costs, differences in setting priorities” which can result delays in implementing projects.

By Cho Chung-un (christory@heraldcorp.com)