An OECD meeting of senior officials from centres of government was formally opened by the Taoiseach yesterday.
Cabinet secretaries and secretaries general from OECD member governments and the European Commission are attending the conference, which is being held in Ireland for the first time. It will focus on the development of policy capacities for the long term.
Opening the meeting, Mr Ahern said that in Ireland the social partners participate in a variety of working groups on long-term policy issues, and this was now "an accepted basis for policy formulation throughout the public sector".