A research study by the DPSA’s Branch GSAI, entitled State of Public Service Delivery: A Citizen-Centred Assessment (2023), revealed that the government’s regulated service delivery improvement mechanisms are being implemented by national and provincial departments in a piecemeal, fragmented, and silorised manner, leaving unintended implementation gaps and a reporting burden on departments.
To address these challenges, the DPSA is developing an Integrated Service Delivery Improvement Framework (isdif) that will integrate these silorised mechanisms identified as a hindrance in the delivery of services across the three spheres of Government.
Consistent with the Constitution (1996) and good public administration practices, the isdif will be subjected to broad and meaningful stakeholder consultation and benchmarked against similar frameworks across the globe, particularly the African continent.
Consultations with Provincial Offices of the Premier (OTPs) and National Departments will resume the extensive consultative process that will shape the emergence of an isdif Discussion document or Green Paper.
“The isdif seeks to align service delivery improvement mechanisms and processes in order to close implementation gaps, optimise the use of resources, boost citizen-centred service delivery, and reduce the reporting burden on departments,” said Mr Ismail Davids, Director of the Productivity and Capability Measurement unit.
The isdif is built on four building blocks or areas of integration:
- Technical Support – Centralised coordination of case management.
- Advocacy – Coordinated information sharing and promotion of service delivery improvement mechanisms.
- Alignment – Strategic alignment of regulations and directives, organisational structures, and planning cycles.
- Reporting – Compliance reporting cycles must be synchronised and digitised to reduce compliance burdens on departments.
“The isdif views integration as a continuum of organisational relationships, aiming to achieve full integration that will produce operational efficiencies, improved service delivery, and value-for-money benefits for both citizens and the public service,” said Mr Davids.
In the coming weeks, the Branch GSAI will undertake a series of engagements with OTPs across the nine provinces to advocate and co-refine the isdif initiative leading to the formalisation of the isdif Discussion Document.