Page 4 - Service Delivery Review_Volume 14_Number 3_2022

From The Editor’s Desk

Change is the only constant

his edition of the While most countries, especially those in the so-called
Service Delivery developing world, still lag in managing the change that
TReview (SDR) ap- frontier technologies dictate, this is not for lack of ef-
pears as we are settling fort, as several stories and case studies we carry in this
into the New Year. Gen- edition attest. In Surfing the tech wave and Building the
erally, 2021 was much next ICT generation we have young, entrepreneurial
better than the year be- Prudence Mabitsela seeking to change the grim statistics
fore it. Who could forget of underdevelopment and poverty through ICT interven-
the disastrous Covid-19 tions. The case study by Makabongwe Siziba, a colleague
global pandemic that in eGovernment Services and Information Management
surprisingly lay in wait at the Department of Public Service and Administration
around the corner of (DPSA), gives us a rare view of how the Public Service
2020? In South Africa, seeks to harness ICT resources for efficient and effective
the high infection rate service delivery.
of this deadly virus seems to be largely petering out. But
then again, if there’s an entrenched lesson from our ex- Investment in research and development is among the
periences of “living with the virus” it is that change is the prerequisites for the adoption of the frontier technolo-
only constant. The evolving Covid-19 virus grimly attests gies listed in the Technology and Innovation Report 2021.
to this. The review of Professor Tshilidzi Marwala’s Closing the
Gap showcases some of the expertise that South Africa
In this issue of the SDR, a case study by the Western possesses in the field. Currently Vice-Chancellor at the
Cape Department of Transport and Public Works (How University of Johannesburg, Professor Marwala is one of
a Change Management strategy can be used to drive the world’s leading thinkers in the field of Artificial Intel-
organisational culture for effective KM) demonstrates ligence (AI). In his book, he successfully explains the key
that “change” does not just happen, but is something frontier technology concepts and charts pathways for
that ought to be deliberately and meticulously managed. change for the different sectors of society.
Similarly, the article on the United Nations Conference
on Trade and Development’s Technology and Innova- Lastly, the case study on the intervention by the national
tion Report 2021 harps on the familiar but vital theme of government in the North West provincial administration
increasing technological changes across many sectors of is a sobering reminder that rhetoric about technological
society worldwide. aspirations and innovation are mere talk in the absence
of good governance and administration, which are key to
According to the Technology and Innovation Report, “fron- facilitating societal change.
tier technologies are redefining our world, especially our
post-pandemic future”. In the report, the change readi- The over-arching theme of this edition is the inevitabil-
ness of 154 countries in embracing the “suite of tech- ity of change not only due to the realities of the Covid-19
nologies that take advantage of digitalisation and con- “new normal” but as a fact of life that, however painful,
nectivity” are rated against progress in five activity areas, needs to be understood, embraced and managed to the
amongst them deployment of Information and Commu- best of our abilities. Enjoy the read. ■
nication Technologies (ICTs) and massive initiatives in Dudley Moloi
skills development.

Managing Editor Editorial Team Editorial Advisory Group The Service Delivery Review is a learning and
Mandla Ngcobo Sebenzile Zibani Rhulani Makhubela knowledge tool for the Public Service. It provides
Mosibudi Mphuthi Zamokwakhe Khuzwayo a platfrom for debate and the exhange of ideas to
Editor Mataywa Busieka aid improved service delivery. Public servants, aca-
Dudley Moloi demics, communities and other interested parties
We belong, We care, are encouraged and welcome to respond and raise
We serve issues in this regard. Letters and feedback should
not be more than 500 words and the maximum
length for articles is 2 000 words. For more infor-
mation please contact
Dudley@dpsa.gov.za
4 Volume 14 No.3 of 2022 | SERVICE DELIVERY REVIEW