Page 4 - Service Delivery Review

From the Editor’s Desk

A Bold Excercise in Policy Reflection

However, not only would recording the pro-
ceedings from the Conference be out of the
range of a publication such as the Service De-
livery Review (SDR). The volume of the Con-
ference’s output would likely result in several
books. This edition of the SDR is but a tip of the
Conference’s output and value.
Eight high-level presentations from the Confer-
ence have been reworked to fit the magazine
format, including changing the titles of the orig-
inal presentations. In the first article, “Bread-
and-Butter Issues and Democratic Consolida-
tion”, Acting Deputy Director-General (DDG) at
the Department of Public Service and Adminis-
tration (DPSA), Dumisani Hlophe, sets the tone
for the Conference. In the piece, DDG Hlophe
argues that democracy and its consolidation
The National Development Plan and State Ca-
pacity Conference looked back at the first ten are more than just holding regular elections and
years of implementing the Government’s 30- respecting the rule of law. Crucially, it is also
year development plan. about ensuring that the essential services that
the Government and the Public Service are
Certainly, one of the highlights of 2022 was charged with delivering are actually delivered.
participating, albeit remotely, in the Conference
that looked at the performance of the Govern- Two other articles are worth noting, mainly as
ment in the first ten years of implementing the they provide a helicopter view of the country’s
National Development Plan (NDP). Why wax Chapter 9 institutions in the context of a ten-
poetic about yet another conference? More- year reflection on the NDP. The first one, “The
over, given Professor Somadoda Fikeni’s scath- NDP through the Prism of the Public Protector”,
ing remarks on South Africa’s propensity for locates the mandate of the Public Protector
“talk-shopping”. In its various forms, the “work- (PP) squarely within the objectives of the NDP.
shop” even features as a key performance area The article reveals that 62% of the PP’s case-
in government circles, he quipped load concerns service delivery complaints and
issues. Drawing from years of data and expe-
Nonetheless, this Conference was notable for riences, the Auditor-General of South Africa
several reasons. Most important was its sub- (AGSA) article, “The NDP: If it Can’t be Mea-
ject line, which is even more pressing given the sured, it Can’t be Achieved”, similarly raised
nation’s unrelenting development challenges. concerns about the performance of the Public
But apart from the topic and timing, the Con- Service, albeit using rands and cents as a mark-
ference was remarkable for its “publicness” er. The AGSA article suggests that the National
and “fishbowl” format. It made for inclusivity, Development Plan (NDP) cannot be achieved
transparency and robustness of engagement if the performance of the Public Service is not
among citizens, public servants, politicians and improved. The article highlights the need for
academics. measurable indicators to assess service deliv-
ery progress in South Africa.
The Government routinely taps into the brains
of some top thinkers in academia, civil society The edition also features three articles, not from
and the private sector. But, these tend to oc- the Conference but related to it. The ”Neglect
cur behind closed doors, and consequently, the of Data Governance Undermines Service Deliv-
broader public is robbed of the value of inter- ery” is an injunction for leveraging on the big
acting with the country’s best minds. Held over data that the Government routinely produces.
three days, the National Development Plan and While the health and wellness article reminds us
State Capacity Conference was a treasure trove that the best policies and technologies would
of lessons and insights. It delved into various come to nought without a healthy workforce
aspects of the NDP, from the plan’s efficacy to does not back them up.
examining its impact on the most basic levels
of society. Dudley Moloi

4 SERVICE DELIVERY REVIEW | Volume 15. No. 3 of 2023