|
|
 |
| |
| August 18, 2006 |
| |
| FEMA Director Paulison Addresses Preparations For Next Hurricane |
WASHINGTON - August 18, 2006. FEMA Director David Paulison addressed FEMA's internal improvements and its preparations for the next major hurricane at a Washington news conference today organized by the Partnership for Public Service.
In connection with the upcoming anniversary of Hurricane Katrina, the Partnership for Public Service has launched a new initiative – Government after Katrina -- to improve government performance by sharing information about Hurricane Katrina and highlighting its lessons to drive forward-looking solutions.
“If there is one lesson to take from Hurricane Katrina, it's that effective government is absolutely essential,” said Partnership President and CEO Max Stier. “We need to leverage the occasion of Katrina's anniversary to focus new energy to the issue of improved government performance.”
As part of the initiative the Partnership is releasing a key set of recommendations, “Five Lessons from Katrina: What Hurricane Katrina Should Teach Us All. The recommendations are available on a new website, www.governmentafterkatrina.org, a one stop site for all recent news articles, reports, and opinion pieces on Katrina and the governmental response.
The five key lessons are:
For good results, government needs good people. The government must dedicate itself to becoming an employer of choice – a place where dedicated public servants are well led, well trained, empowered and rewarded for their service to our nation.
Coordination is king. Our federal government must improve its capacity to work as a network; no response will be effective if it is not coordinated at all levels and across all its components.
We must learn from our mistakes, but also our successes. To learn all the lessons of the tragedy of Hurricane Katrina, we must see the whole picture – the good and the bad – and figure out how to emulate the best aspects of the response.
Long-term challenges require long-term solutions. The Partnership urges the appointment of a Chief Management Officer (CMO) in federal agencies, a proven professional with a track record of success in transforming the core management functions of an organization, whose tenure will extend beyond four-year terms.
We must pay now, or we will pay later. Training and otherwise enabling federal officials to manage these changes successfully requires a substantial investment, but it is an investment that will more than pay for itself over time.
The Partnership is holding a series of press briefings with government leaders and Katrina experts who will offer recommendations for new policies to improve future government responses. The first event is a breakfast discussion today with FEMA Director David Paulison at the National Press Club. Federal Coordinator for the Office of Gulf Coast Rebuilding Donald Powell will participate on August 22 and Comptroller General David Walker, on September 6th.
“Hurricane Katrina was a teaching moment for this country. One year later, the $64,000 question is: what have we learned?” said Stier. “This effort is designed to ensure that the right people have learned the right lessons about the importance of effective government and the best ways to improve its performance.”
Government after Katrina is a project of the Partnership, supported by the Ford Foundation. The Partnership for Public Service works to revitalize federal government by inspiring a new generation to serve and by transforming the way government works.
Sources: Partnership for Public Service and Equity International |
| |
| |
| |
|
