TOP government officials from Abu Dhabi, the capital of the United Arab Emirates, are here this week to exchange views with Singapore's senior officials on the increasingly complex challenges they face.

One talking point will be how different agencies in a country can work together to tackle issues that do not fall neatly into the traditional boundaries of government departments.

Singapore will share its best practices in taking this whole-of-government approach, one that it had adopted in recent years to tackle terrorism and Sars. Another area is how it has gone about developing new niches of economic growth.

Public Service Division (PSD) permanent secretary Lim Soo Hoon said she hoped the exchange would 'stimulate a discussion on the processes and structures that Abu Dhabi is developing as part of its public sector reforms'.

The 21 officials from Abu Dhabi are taking part in a four-day programme organised by the Civil Service College here, the PSD said in a statement on Monday.

The programme, known as the Abu Dhabi Leadership Forum, started on Tuesday and will end on Friday.

The delegation is headed by Sheikh Abdullah bin Mohammed bin Butti Al Hamed, Under-secretary of the Court of Ruler's Representative in the Western Region.

On Thursday, the officials are due to call on Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong and Minister for Defence and Minister in charge of the Civil Service, Mr Teo Chee Hean.

Abu Dhabi, one of the seven emirates that make up the oil-rich United Arab Emirates in the Middle East, has a population of about 1.5 million.

Ms Lim said: 'As a small nation, Singapore has much in common with Abu Dhabi, and the Leadership Forum will be a valuable platform for us to learn from each other and build closer ties.'