The Prime Minister of Namibia is appointed by the President in terms of the provisions of Article 32 of the Constitution. Further, Article 36 of the Constitution stipulates that “ The Prime Minister shall be the leader of Government business in Parliament, shall co-ordinate the work of the Cabinet and shall advise and assist the President in the execution of the functions of Government” and Article 34 stipulates that where it is regarded as necessary or expedient that a person deputise for the President because of a temporary absence from the country, the President appoints the Prime Minister to deputise for him.
In terms of the provisions of the Public Service Act of 1995, the Prime Minister is also responsible for the overall management of the public service.
By virtue of his responsibilities of advising and assisting the President, as the leader of government business in Parliament, as the co-ordinator of the work of the Cabinet, and as the political authority responsible for the public service, the Prime Minister’s task involves co-ordinating the work of the government at inter-ministerial and inter-governmental levels and for projecting the good image of the government.
In view of the overarching responsibilities of the Prime Minister that encompass the whole government, it would not be amiss to outline some of the initiatives undertaken by him as follows:
1. Since 1993, based on the appointment letters issued by the President, the Prime Minister deputised for the President for 273 days. Prior to 1993, no letters were issued but he deputised whenever the President was out of the country.
2. The Prime Minister, in his capacity as the leader of government business in the Parliament, spearheaded the initiative to amend Article 29 of the Constitution to allow the present incumbent (the President) to contest election for one more term. He contested the election and won securing 77% votes. This level of victory vindicated the arguments adduced by the Prime Minister during the motivation speech in the National Assembly.
3. In 1991, the Prime Minister chaired the historic Land Conference which was attended by over five hundred delegates from all over Namibia. The recommendations of this conference formed the basis of the land reform initiative of the government.
4. Over the years, the Prime Minister held a number of consultative conferences with academics, media practitioners, religious leaders, and workers and employers.
5. The Prime Minister initiated the rationalisation process of the public service in 1992 to accelerate affirmative action and to develop better co-ordination between skills of personnel and demands of the work. Today, over 97% of the public service staff members comprise the formerly disadvantaged. The process was taken forward in 1996 with the adoption of the Wage and Salary Commission’s (WASCOM) recommendations.
6. The Prime Minster played a pivotal role in the implementation of the Peace Project aimed at defusing the crisis caused by the problem of ex-combatants. This initiative resulted in the employment of over 9000 ex-combatants in the various offices, ministries and agencies of the government. Though absorption of so many ex-combatants resulted in the bloating of the civil service, it was considered a lesser evil than the potential unrest that the situation could have caused.
7. The Prime Minister guided the drought relief operations during the 1992/93 drought. Despite the severity of the drought, no life was lost.
8. From the very start, the Prime Minster has championed the cause of good governance, transparency and accountability. Some of his initiatives include the introduction of the Public Service Charter General Principles, and his office facilitated individual service charters in different offices, ministries and agencies. In the same context, he was instrumental in his Office holding the National Integrity Conference in 1998.
9. Because of his initiatives of good governance in Namibia, he is often invited to public service reform conferences. For instance, he was the chairman of the Fourteenth Meeting of Experts on the United Nations Programme in Public Administration and Finance. He helped draft the final version of the African Civil Service Charter and, as a member of the Ministerial Working Group of the Charter, he has been working to co-ordinate the work on this Charter within the region.
10. He has worked relentlessly to promote the policy of national reconciliation.
11. He has spearheaded Namibia’s leap into the information age. As a result of his commitment, there is great deal of awareness in the government about information and communication technologies. In 1999, he also initiated IT workshops for Cabinet Ministers to further enhance efficiencies. As a result of his work in this field, he has been invited by Microsoft to present a paper on Namibia’s experience at the Microsoft Government Leaders’ Conference in Seattle, USA. In order to reduce digital divide between rural and urban areas, the Prime Minister is exploring the possibility of establishing digital villages in Namibia with the possible help of Microsoft and other donor agencies.
12. He is also helping co-ordinate the implementation of the decentralisation policy.
13. As his Office is the focal point for negotiations with the unions, he has occasionally intervened to facilitate the process.
14. He has also helped diffuse conflict between workers and employers. For instance, his negotiating a settlement during the TCL dispute averted a potentially explosive situation.
15. Being mindful of the need to attract investment in the country, the Prime Minister has attended a number of important economic forums, such as, the Crans Montana Forum held in Switzerland, and the International Herald Tribune conferences at Cape Town and Gaberone. He has also persuaded the International Herald Tribune to hold its next investment conference this year in Windhoek.
16. In recognition of his many achievements locally and globally, he has been awarded a number of honorary doctorates and other honours.
In the carrying out of his multifarious duties, the Prime Minister is helped by the Deputy Prime Minister. Specifically, he has delegated his authority to the Deputy Prime Minister on some personnel matters, such as, civil service appointments, promotions, and transfers. In the absence of the Prime Minister, the Deputy Prime Minister also acts on his behalf. Further, in the absence of the President and the Prime Minister, the Deputy Prime Minister acts on behalf of the President.
The Prime Minister, in the carrying out of his responsibilities is also helped by the various departments of his Office which consist of:
1. Department Cabinet Secretariat and Policy Analysis which also encompasses the Directorate Efficiency Charter Unit and the Emergency Management Unit;
2. Department Public Service Management and Public Service Commission Secretariat;
3. Department Administration
4. Department Public Service Information Technology Management;
5. President's Economic Advisory Council; and
6. Directorate Elections.
Achievements
As per the provisions of Article 43 of the Constitution, the Secretary to Cabinet is appointed by the President. He is the head of the public service. As the head of public service, he/she also serves as the principal link between the Prime Minister and the public service and is responsible to the Prime Minister for its overall effectiveness. Thus, his various responsibilities include:
1. Working closely with the Prime Minister to assist him in providing the necessary support to the President who is the Chairman of the Cabinet, and to facilitate the work of the Prime Minister insofar as the co-ordination of government administration is concerned;
2. Advising the Cabinet on technical and procedural issues, and on actions taken to implement Cabinet decisions;
3. Servicing Cabinet committees;
4. Being a custodian of all Cabinet papers; and
5. Working closely with permanent secretaries and holding meetings with them on a regular basis with a view to co-ordinating, directing and supervising their individual and collective work, and securing the efficiency of the public service.
In this work, he is assisted by the Department Cabinet Secretariat and Policy Analysis.
Cabinet as the executive branch of government plays an important role in the proper administration of the state and is responsible for the initiation, formulation, adoption, implementation and evaluation of policies. In the carrying out of its operations, Cabinet is served administratively by the Department Cabinet Secretariat and Policy Analysis.
The department performs a number of functions as follows:
1. Provision of efficient, professional, and technical assistance to Cabinet and its Standing Committees, as well as the ad hoc committees created by Cabinet from time to time;
2. Evaluation and monitoring of the implementation of Cabinet decisions;
3. Analysis of policy and conduct of research on issues being addressed by Cabinet and the Cabinet Committees; and
4. Safekeeping of Cabinet documents and records, and others.
In 1990, two Standing Cabinet Committees were formed, i.e., Cabinet Committee on Legislation, and Cabinet Committee on Defence and Security. In addition, a whole rage of ad hoc Cabinet Committees was established. The two Standing Cabinet Committees served Cabinet superbly, but the proliferation of the ad hoc Cabinet Committees made the streamlining of operations very difficult. Consequently, it was decided to rationalise the many ad hoc Cabinet Committees into nine Standing Cabinet Committees are as follows:
1. Overall Policy and Priorities Cabinet Committee (OPPCC)
2. Cabinet Committee on Defence and Security(CCDS)
3. Cabinet Committee on the Public Service (CCPS)
4. Cabinet Committee on Law and Order (CCLO)
5. Cabinet Committee on International Relations and Protocol (CCIRP)
6. Cabinet Committee on Economic Development and Parastatals (CCEDP)
7. Cabinet Committee on Legislation (CCL)
8. Cabinet Committee on Land and Social Issues(CCLSI)
9. Treasury Cabinet Committee (TCC)
The Standing Cabinet Committees play a crucial role in the process of policy-making. Policy issues are referred to Cabinet once they have been carefully examined by the Cabinet Committees and the latter recommends the best policy option(s) for Cabinet’s consideration/approval. As a result of this change, the decision-making process improved considerably.
The socio-economic challenges of the new millennium require that the Department Cabinet Secretariat and Policy Analysis takes its rightful place as a central unit responsible for policy analysis, co-ordination amongst the various offices, ministries and agencies to ensure successful policy formulation and implementation. Therefore, the system of reporting to Cabinet by the implementing offices, ministries and agencies was designed to concretise the current system of monitoring Cabinet policies. The aforesaid system of reporting provides a mechanism for bi-annual reporting on the Cabinet decisions to enhance accountability and responsibility of the implementing offices, ministry, or agency.
Although, much has improved with regard to the process of decision-making, a system aimed at reducing the burden from Cabinet needs to be developed. Therefore, all Cabinet Committees are expected to monitor developments in their spheres of specialisation and recommend the best course of action to Cabinet.
Based on these challenges and strategies, a Strategic Workshop for the Department Cabinet Secretariat and Policy analysis is planned during the first quarter of the year 2000. The workshop would focus the creation of a Policy Analysis and Co-ordination Think Tank in the Office of the Prime Minster and to bring the vision, mission and functions of the Department Cabinet Secretariat and Policy Analysis into sharp focus.
Emergency Management Unit
Back in 1993, the President established a National Emergency Management System (NEMS) to put the Nation at the highest level of preparedness for any kind of natural or man-made disasters and to implement a well co-ordinated emergency operation with the aim of saving lives, minimising suffering, protecting properties and rehabilitating the lives of the affected population.
An Emergency Management Unit (EMU) has been established within the Office of the Prime Minister serves as the national focal point on all emergencies. The EMU is not only the executive arm of the National Emergency Management Committee (NEMC) but is also the co-ordinating body, which, under the Office of the Prime Minister serves as national focal point for all emergencies.
While the EMU and the Ministry of Agriculture Water and Rural Development are the major role players in disaster mitigation, e.g., drought. The former plays a co-ordinating role, while the latter is entirely responsible for the implementation of drought relief programmes. Objectives of the Division Emergency Management Unit are as follows:
1. Conducting a study to identify potential natural and man-made disasters, and ensure that contingency plans are in place to minimise the impact of such disasters.
2. Provision of high quality training programmes to ensure a strong and increased professional capability of all stakeholders in disaster and emergency management.
3. To co-ordinate work on countering all kinds of national emergencies on behalf of Cabinet.
4. To co-ordinate and facilitate the implementation of disaster plans and the response of role players in the event of a disaster.
5. To anticipate emergencies in advance, such as, rainfall failure or rainfall variability, and prepare to manage the predicted emergencies.
6. To serve as a model for the rest of southern Africa and eventually enable the establishment of a Centre for Disaster Preparedness, Crisis-Centre, Anti-terrorist Unit, and the establishment of the Crisis Management team by the Ministry of Home Affairs.
The EMU’s primary aim is to identify, and mobilise resources available within line-ministries, and NGOs and how they could be utilised in the event of a disaster or emergency. Resources referred to here, are human, material, financial and equipment.
Since its establishment, the EMU has been able to establish structures at National and Regional levels to manage the recurring problems i.e. drought emergencies. Furthermore, the EMU successfully articulated a Formal National Disaster Plan and Policy Document which was approved by Cabinet.
Within a short space of time, the EMU has also established a networking relationship with SADC Countries in Disaster Preparedness. The unit has also actively conducted extensive training in Disaster Preparedness Nationally in all the thirteen regions.
As a co-ordinating body, EMU will facilitate the smooth functioning of the NEMS. Thus, EMU would continue to consult all the stakeholders at both regional and national levels i.e. the REMUs and CEMUs.
Furthermore, the unit would also provide comprehensive training programmes to ensure a strong and increased professional capability of all stakeholders in disaster/ emergency management. As noted earlier, the EMU supports initiatives to address poverty reduction programmes in the country through co-ordinating and collaboration with institutions directly implementing these programmes.
Plans are also underway to produce and edit self-study and workshop oriented training materials on disaster and emergency management, by producing videos and reading materials on the Namibian situation as teaching aids.
Efficiency and Charter Unit
In order to satisfy the need for a focal point for Public Service Reform (PSR) the establishment of the Efficiency and Charter Unit was approved by Cabinet in September 1996. The unit commenced its operations in June 1997. Full staff complement was achieved by mid August 1997 with the appointment of director.
Some of the essential objectives of the ECU are:
1. Development of Charters on the nine principles as enshrined in the Public Service Charter;
2. Introduction of Efficiency Scrutiny in all offices, ministries and agencies as well as to monitor the process and advise the Secretary to Cabinet;
3. Develop and solicit Cabinet’s support for Outsourcing Policy so as to increase organisational effectiveness;
4. Introduction of organisational performance management for public service organisations by developing effective methodology for measuring organisational effectiveness and;
5. To provide a routine review of progress of Wascom Recommendations as well as to provide input to NDPI components regarding to the public service reform.
The ECU's initial brief was to develop the General Principles of the Public Service Charter which was launched by the Prime Minister on 29th October 1997. The ECU, as the custodian of the Public Service Charter is thus responsible for seeing that its nine Principles are promoted and become inherent in all public service reform activities. Explanatory presentations were made to all offices, ministries and agencies in Windhoek and all thirteen regions in the country to further promote the Public Service General Principles. 6200 laminated A3 size posters have been distributed to all offices, ministries and agencies to date.
The growth of the PSC programme requires that individual customer service charters, relating to specific service delivery functions, be developed. The ECU has consulted with all Accounting Officers within all offices, ministries and agencies to determine the priority areas for functional charter development.
A charter programme, indicating fifty-nine functional areas and the time schedule over a five year period has been drawn up. This was published on 17 February 1998 , and sent to all Accounting Officers by the Secretary to Cabinet.
To take this programme forward the ECU is now assisting offices, ministries and agencies in the development of functional charters covering such areas as patients, immigration, foreign missions, customs and excise, secondary and primary education. The Patients Charter was launched at the end of 1998, while the Fisheries Charter also is complete.
The Charter programme, which was delayed due to personnel problems, progressed well under an agreement with a donor to finance a local consultant specifically engaged (November 1998 – started effectively February 1999) to take forward the charter process. An initial training period and introductory meetings with offices, ministries and agencies were undertaken; this method of operation is proving successful and holds promise as a future route to improve the implementation of other ECU programmes.
The ECU, through its own internal workshops jointly developed ideas to take forward this process in a “Namibian Way”. The efficiency scrutiny methodology was developed as a “How to …” guide over the period July 1998 to September 1998 through a process of written consultation with key players; the final document was published on 10th September 1998. Publication of this document was followed by seminars conducted by the ECU in November 1998; a total of 149 OMA staff at chief control officer level and above attended these seminars.
In November and December 1998, selected ministries were approached to identify suitable efficiency scrutiny targets to pilot the system. These targets were based upon the feedback from the interactive part of the seminars and returns received from ministries.
The ECU performed an analysis of the submissions by offices, ministries and agencies to the High Level Committee on their core and non-core functions. This provided a baseline for the future work on outsourcing; a provisional total of areas were identified that had potential to seventy-three be outsourced. The ECU subsequently consulted all OFfices, ministries and agencies and identified priority areas and an outsourcing programme has been assembled indicating the areas to be investigated for outsourcing together with a draft five-year time schedule.
Despite the lack of an agreed policy and as some offices, ministries and agencies have already started their outsourcing activities, the ECU continues to provide support to individual projects such as MWTC 2000, Laboratory Services, Medical Stores, Energy Fund, Motor Vehicle Accident Fund.
The ECU is also involved with Government Garage, NIED, Tertiary Education, NIP, NQA, MET (Resource Management), Veterinary Laboratories, Financial Institutions, Namibia Wildlife Resorts, Agricultural Engineering, Commercial Extension Services and Research, Rural Water Resources and Vocational Training; these interventions are at various stages. The table below is indicative of the current situation.
Table 1: Outsourcing
No of outsourcing possibilities originally identified (memo March 1998) |
No of completed outsourcings (01/01/00) |
Likely number of completed outsourcings (01/01/00) |
No of outsourcings in progress (01/01/00) |
% progress of outsourcings in process (01/01/00) |
73 |
2 |
5 |
12 |
15 |
Thus the outsourcing policy is currently under review within OPM senior management. Approval of the revised policy proposals for the outsourcing programme will enable the programme to gain momentum.
Performance Management
The original title of this component of the ECU’s programme was “Efficiency Targets”. This has been changed to “Performance Management” to concur with modern day terminology. The following activities have been carried out in preparation to introduce this programme:
Cost Data
The ECU started in August 1997 to build a cost information base for all offices, ministries and agencies relating to main Public Service Resources. Budgets and costs, historical and current; historical budget summaries from 1992/93 to 1999/00 (8 months) have been assembled for all votes and main divisions. Current costs, for all votes, main divisions and sub-divisions are available in crude data form on a monthly basis from March 1996 to October 1999.
Personnel Data
Coherent and accurate data relating to all OFFICES, MINISTRIES AND AGENCIES is a significant gap in the government information system.
The ECU is in contact will PSM and PSITM and this problem is being addressed through a centralised system currently coming up to speed under the auspices of PSITM. The system will only have full credibility when it links to payroll; a treasury committee is overseeing this facet. The ECU has been granted access to this system to enable performance data to be extracted. Currently the available information is sparse.
Performance and Effectiveness Management Programme
In April 1999, the ECU commissioned a study to evaluate the proposals made by the unit with regard to setting up and managing an organisational performance management regime and make further recommendations for the Namibian situation. The study also required that suitable consultants be recommended, terms of reference be defined and the control measures for the consultancy be laid out. This pre-consultancy of one week duration interviewed thirty-three key players within the OMA structure. The draft report was presented to those key players and OPM senior management on 29th April 1999. The final report was issued on 17th May 1999 and circulated to all previously in receipt of the draft report plus all Accounting Officers.
The full consultancy commenced on 20th September 1999 to address five ministries (MBEC, MHEVTST, MHSS, MPCS, MF) as a pilot implementation phase. This consultancy will extend into the year 2000 when another five ministries will be targeted.
This programme, in the long term links closely with the outsourcing programme, NDP1 and NDP2, performance based budgeting and the development of strategic plans. The ECU maintains contact with both the National Planning Commission and the Ministry of Finance on this programme.
Public Service Commission
The PSC is mandated by way of the Constitution of the Republic of Namibia, Article 113, the Public Service Act, 1995 (Act 13 of 1995) and the Public Service Commission Act, 1990 (Act 6 of 1990) to perform the following duties, functions and powers:
1. to advise the President and the government on;
specified categories of employment in the public service with special
2. the appointment of suitable persons to regard to the balanced structuring thereof;
3. the exercise of adequate disciplinary control over such persons in order to assure the fair administration of personnel policy;
4. the remuneration and the retirement benefits of any such persons;
5. all other matters which by law pertain to the public service.
In addition, it is to recommend the following personnel activities and related issues to the Prime Minister for approval:
Appointment on special conditions, appointments, promotions, transfers on probation, transfer and secondment of staff members, retention of staff member after retirement age additional to the establishment, retirement and discharge of staff member, suspension of staff member, appointment of persons additional to the fixed establishment and other specific matters pertaining to conditions of service.
The Public Service Commission submits a report to Parliament on an annual basis. The Wages and Salary Commission that was established on 18 January 1995 to undertake fundamental review of the public service pay structure made specific recommendations with regard to the role of the Public Service Commission (PSC) and suggested two very important functions for the PSC, namely:
1. To act as an avenue for appeal for the public servants who have been aggrieved by unfair treatment and as a check to possible abuse by the government in the personnel field by way of corruption, nepotism, and plain unreasonableness;
2. To help the government with all the problems inherent in the managing of the public service by giving wise advice: provided that the combined experience and wisdom of the PSC is appropriate to its new role and the independence of the PSC members is obvious to all.
3. By 1993-1994 the first rationalisation exercise took place and recruitment now took on a more closed character in that promotion posts were advertised internally. Only entry positions and those where the public service still needed to build capacity are advertised in newspapers.
The phase from independence to the present was characterised by two major events, namely, the balancing of the Public Service; and the change from an executive Public Service Commission to that of a recommendatory and advisory one.
In the phase following independence (1990-1992) the Public Service Commission followed a recruitment process specifically aimed at opening up the public service on all levels in order to:
1. recruit as widely as possible by advertising all posts in newspapers, public circulars and the radio;
2. to set qualification and experience requirements relevant to the Namibian situation; and to
3. allow ministries to balance the public service from the large talent pool attracted by this recruitment process.
Following a two year strategic planning process the Secretariat of the Public Service Commission was separated from the Department Public Service Management in December 1997 to emphasise the Commission’s role as recommendatory advisory body.
Directorate Public Service Commission Secretariat
The Public Service Commission Secretariat consists of two divisions namely Auditing and Staffing. The division Auditing was known as Personnel Advice, Inspection and Training (PAIT) before the restructuring which was completed at the end of 1997. Some of the functions which used to be performed by the division PAIT, have been taken over by Human Resource Management since then.
The Public Service Commission Secretariat core objectives are:
1. To initiate and influence the development and implementation of sound human resources policies and practices;
2. To ensure the adequate, well motivated and competent staffing of the Public Service;
3. To ensure compliance with human resources standards;
4. To render an efficient and effective secretariat service to the Public Service
Commission;
5. To continuously develop staff through exposure to the latest developments in human resource practices;
6. Investigate specific complaints from individuals and groups that relate to personnel administrative matters to ensure fairness;
7. Conduct comprehensive audits in the Office/Ministries/Agencies. Such audits are focussed at compliance, adequacy audit and post implementation and follow-up.
Table 2: Inspections, investigations, and meetings
| 1991 | 1992 | 1993/94 | 1995/96 | 1997/98 | 1998/99 | ||
| Inspections | 45 | 43 | 4 | ||||
| Investigations: Complaints | 21 | 36 | |||||
| Consultative Meetings | 19 | 11 | 12 |
The Public Service Commission’s vision is to ensure that the Public Service of the Republic of Namibia will:
1. Become the preferred employer that attracts and retains people with talent, commitment and imagination;
2. Provide a challenging and stimulating working environment where staff members are accountable, recognised and valued for their work and output;
3. Be respected for quality performance, dedication to service for the public and guardianship of Namibia’s resources.
Challenges faced by the directorate include:
Interpretations of WASCOM recommendations by personnel offices; auditing of personnel offices; staff shortage; lack of technical know-how of personnel audit; lack of operational skills for Information Technology (computer)
Meanwhile, overcoming some of the difficulties include the training of staff; training needs assessment of personnel offices; advise personnel offices; audit personnel offices; revamp auditing questionnaire/format; capacity building; continuous research, the collating and analyses of available information on the prevailing circumstances enabling the Secretariat to maintain a high standard of credibility through the provision of accurate, reliable and viable recommendation/advice and alternatives, recruitment of staff with the calibre benefiting the Public Service, their constant training and development to acquire the requisite skills and experience for the year 2030 and beyond coupled with the compensatory reward for motivated and psychological enrichment.
Department Public Service Management
The first task of government after independence was to adopt innovative approaches to rationalise the eleven ethnic administrations into one national Public Service. Government absorbed both those who were excluded by apartheid and those who served in the pre-independence administration, in compliance with Article 141 of the Namibian Constitution.This resulted in the Namibian Public Service expanding considerably from approximately 46 500 at independence to about 69 478 funded posts in the 1998/99 financial year.
Why and how did such a situation arise? This situation was born out of the realisation that if the hard-won peace, which is a conditio sine qua non for development, had to be maintained, some degree of accommodation needed to be effected.
In order to enhance the legitimacy of new Institutions, new enabling legislation such as the Public Service Commission Act, 1990 (Act 2 of 1990) and the Public Service Act, 1995 (Act 13 of 1995) were enacted. In line with enabling legislation, the size of the Public Service; the negative impact thereof on the economic growth and its inefficiencies; ineffectiveness and limited performance, contributed to the launch of the Rationalisation of the Public Service during 1992. This exercise was aimed at trimming and restructuring the Public Service in order to provide a more efficient and effective service. Rationalisation was therefore the first step towards The Public Service Reform Process. The 1992 Rationalisation process failed to a large extent because:
The Committee tasked with the rationalisation exercise went beyond its remit, and as a result, its recommendations, some of which were a product of good work, could therefore not be sanctioned politically.
Namibia’s ratio of one civil servant per twenty-four Namibians makes it one of the largest civil service(s) in the developing world (1992 estimate). Because of this and many other issues, the Wage and Salary Commission was established with the following brief terms of reference:
analyse the current and propose remuneration policy, salary structure, government’s employment and fiscal policy, the macro-economic environment and
other areas aimed at identifying proposals in order to improve efficiency in the Public Service and in effect to Reform the Public Service.
WASCOM recommended various changes in a number of areas which were endorsed by Cabinet and which resulted in what we call Central Initiatives, such as right sizing and a 2% rate cap on expenditure levels on which we will focus later on in more details.
The breakdown of civil service is as follows:
Number of civil servants (excluding teachers and security forces): 29 152
Teachers 25 308
Defence force personnel (including police force): 14000
Proportion of civil service wage bill (excluding teachers and security forces) as percentage of government budget: 22.57 %.
Size of civil service (excluding teachers and security forces) as percentage of population: 1.8 %
Male to female ratio at management level: 5:1
Male to female ratio at non-management level: 8:10
The department aims at strengthening the strategic and management planning capacity of government institutions, advising on value for money and changing the culture through training and empowerment of staff.
In order to sustain the momentum of development the department has gained through its many interventions, it is important that it focuses as objectively as possible on the following critical issues that have the potential of influencing its future business direction: budget constraint and expenditure levels, financial planning and information, commitment to change, human resources planning and development, management, organisation, culture and communication, decentralisation, future demands for our services, implementation of Cabinet decisions, Charter development and Staff Code, Ethics, Early Retirement and Affirmative Action Bill, disaster planning, and social deficit, the role of Government and the private sector
The role that this department plays in managing and co-ordinating the Public Service could be instrumental in assisting regional governments in the development of policies that are appropriate to their needs.
The competencies and experience it has gained could be used to forewarn them to prevent the pitfalls that they could fall.
Directorate Human Resource Management
1. A General Salary Adjustment was implemented with effect from 1 April 1991 with the specific aim of narrowing the salary gap between the lower and higher income groups. An increase of three salary notches for those earning a Salary of N$3 183 to N$5 481 per annum was implemented.
2. Fifty chapters of the Public Service Staff Rules were translated from Afrikaans to English.
3. Public Service Regulations K1, K3, K4(1) and K4.3 were amended to eliminate discrimination against female public servants with regard to membership of the Public Service Employees Medical Aid Scheme and to make it possible for them to become members in their own right and to register their spouses and dependant children as their dependants.
4. The National Education Certificate and National Higher Education Certificate was granted recognition for grant purposes. Study grants for Rundu College, Ongwediva College and Katima Mulilo College were also made equal to those of the Windhoek College of Education.
5. As a result of a Cabinet Decision, the Government Institutions Pension Fund was amended to the effect that all members (male and female) contribute to the pension fund at an equal rate. Previously males contributed to the pension fund at a rate of 7% and females at a rate of 5%. This difference had been effected as the pension fund made provision for the payment of an annuity to the widow of the deceased male member whereas the widower of the deceased female member did not qualify for such an annuity. In all cases the survivor of the deceased member is now entitled to an annuity.
6. The Public Service Staff Rule D.VII/II (Housing) was amended to make provision for the payment of subsidy to staff members who own dwellings away from their duty stations, on the condition that the staff member’s households permanently occupy these dwellings.
7. Dual mortgage bond registration was made possible and included under the measures regarding the Public Service Housing Scheme. This only applied to married staff members (whether in or out of community of property) and only one of the spouses may receive a subsidy.
8. Provision was made for the payment of Housing Subsidy to staff members according to the approved rates and conditions for housing loans obtained through the Build-Together-Program of the Ministry of Regional and Local Government and Housing.
9. Provision was made that medical practitioners, in cases where a staff member has died without an estate and where no executor is appointed, can claim unsettled medical accounts of the deceased staff member directly from the Ministry of Finance (PSEMAS)
10. The following Public Service Staff Rules were issued: Leave of Absence PSSR D.I, Overtime Duty PSSR D.VI/II, Overtime Remuneration PSSR VI/III, Rent Allowance PSSR D.VII/III, Performance Appraisal PSSR E.VI/I, and Filling of posts on probation PSSR B.V.
11. Provision was made for the granting of six weeks sick leave to female staff members undergoing a caesarean section.
12. The PSSR on the Home Owner’s Scheme for Staff Members was issued which increased the loan amount from N$155 100 to N$200 700.
Directorate: Human Resources Development
Based on the Bentil Report the Directorate: Human Resources Development has developed from being a function of administrative matters, Training Division in SPI, at the beginning of the year 1990 to a fully emancipated directorate within the Department Public Service Management within the Office of the Prime Minister. The Directorate: Human Resources Development from its inception in the first year after independence has focussed on training and development for all Public Servants of Namibia. Thus the directorate delivered a range of training courses and workshops to the different Offices/Ministries and Agencies based on training needs that arose from the changing times and environment as well as Public Service Reform.
In addition to the generic courses which are updated regularly and added on by the DHRD team and their counterparts in the different offices, ministries and agencies, the Directorate aims at becoming a Policy Design and Implementation Unit and the Standard Setting Body for Public Service Training.
One of the achievements which is important to be mentioned is the fact that through the training process a wide range of formerly disadvantaged staff members of the Public Service of Namibia was exposed to development, including women and lower level employees.
Training courses provided by the Directorate Human Resources are updated regularly in order to keep trend with global and regional developments, trends and needs.
In this respect the Directorate works closely with the Centre for Public Service Training (CPST) which was founded in 1994 as a result of the WASCOM recommendations for a specific focus on Senior Management Training. Since 1994 an average of 300 Public Servants including many senior managers have been trained by the CPST in conjunction with DHRD in the Office of the Prime Minister. As the attitude towards the value and cost-effectiveness of training, in other words the value of a trained workforce and human knowledge as an asset to the organisation, is slowly but surely changing for the better in the entire Public Service of Namibia, this trends will most probably be rising towards March 2000 and beyond.
The launch and implementation process of a new Training Policy for the entire Public Service of Namibia which entails Gender Balance, Affirmative Action processes, the ongoing responsibility of all involved parties with regard to staff development and sound performance management practices.
Worth mentioning is a project which has only recently started, but which will most probably have a lasting impact on Human Resource Development in the next three to five years. After an extensive Senior Management Needs Assessment in all offices, ministries and agencies, the results clearly showed a need for increased competency-based training on all levels including Senior Management in the Public Service of Namibia. The consultants responsible for the data evaluation, in conjunction with DHRD and CPST, then suggested a complete Job Modelling Programme for the entire Public Service. This Job Modelling Programme will entail job profiles and competencies needed for these specific jobs. Therefore, focussed and meaningful training programmes and plans could be designed for each staff member of the Public Service, which would result in training plans for job categories, individual career plans and succession plans where people could be trained for promotional positions.
This Programme would also support the recruitment and selection process and might in the end add to a trained, skilled and motivated workforce of the Public Service of Namibia. The first stage of this Job Modelling Programme should be finished by March 2000.
Co-operation between DHRD in the Office of the Prime Minister and different donor agencies which led to a high amount of co-ordination and meaningful spending of donor funds for training and development. DHRD tries to also bring together the different donors in order for them to co-ordinate their training programmes so that duplication is avoided and more transparency achieved.
Staff development and capacity building process within the Directorate: Human Resources Development, where all staff members are constantly being trained towards the future approach of the Directorate. They are trained to become training advisors and coaches in an increasing way, becoming experts in terms of Training Needs Analysis and the design of detailed and focussed training plans based on the different job profiles, setting and maintaining of training standards in terms with the training policy of the Public Service of Namibia as well as specialising in different fields like Affirmative Action, Performance Management, Competency-based Training, the Training of Trainers etc.
A challenge for the Directorate: Human Resources Development for the new millennium will be the change process from service delivery unit to an effective policy implementation unit which can cater for all different kinds of requests from all offices, ministries and agencies with regard to training and human resource development.
Another challenge for the new millennium would be an efficient and functioning performance management system for the Public Service of Namibia, as this would be the basis for successful training and development.
If the training function is outsourced completely, DHRD will not offer free training courses anymore and offices, ministries and agencies would have to pay for training and development in future.
Another challenge would be the computerisation of the entire Public Service of Namibia. The future of training and human resource development will lie in computerised training which would be available on CD ROM and thus of great advantage for training in the regions and within the offices, ministries and agencies, as DHRD could produce these courses and thus ensure quality and standards as well as uniform generic training courses.
Department of Administration
The Administration Department provides support services to the Office of the Prime Minister (OPM) that comprise mainly financial and personnel administration. In addition, it provides auxiliary services, such as, meeting the procurement needs, inventory and transport management, and archival services to the OPM. Towards the end of the decade, it also successfully carried out project management in the public service to ensure that problems relating to the Year 2000 (Y2K) date-change problem were dealt with.
The Directorate of Public Service Information Technology Management came under the Department’s wing in 1997.
An important responsibility of the department is the compilation and execution of annual budgets of OPM, administration of a computer services trade account (that generated its own revenue and squared off surpluses to the credit of the State Revenue Fund), and an Independence Celebrations Fund held at a commercial bank. It administered annual appropriations ranging from N$55.7 million in 1990/91 to the 1999/2000 allocation of N$75.6 million. Just less than half the allocation was consistently applied for personnel expenditure. Apart from the provision under standard budget lines, special allocations for improvements in conditions of service for ten years amounted to more than N$1 billion.
The component also maintained a personnel establishment that now comprises 276 posts of various categories of staff that are either permanent, temporary or contract employees. During the period, it implemented significant changes to personnel administration as a result of various pieces of legislation, such as, the Public Service Act of 1995, the Labour Act of 1992, the Social Security Act of 1994, and the Affirmative Action (Employment) Act of 1998.
Department of Administration
The Administration Department provides support services to the Office of the Prime Minister (OPM) that comprise mainly financial and personnel administration. In addition, it provides auxiliary services, such as, meeting the procurement needs, inventory and transport management, and archival services to the OPM. Towards the end of the decade, it also successfully carried out project management in the public service to ensure that problems relating to the Year 2000 (Y2K) date-change problem were dealt with.
An important responsibility of the department is the compilation and execution of annual budgets of OPM, administration of a computer services trade account (that generated its own revenue and squared off surpluses to the credit of the State Revenue Fund), and an Independence Celebrations Fund held at a commercial bank. It administered annual appropriations ranging from N$55.7 million in 1990/91 to the 1999/2000 allocation of N$75.6 million. Just less than half the allocation was consistently applied for personnel expenditure. Apart from the provision under standard budget lines, special allocations for improvements in conditions of service for ten years amounted to more than N$1 billion.
The component also maintained a personnel establishment that now comprises 276 posts of various categories of staff that are either permanent, temporary or contract employees. During the period, it implemented significant changes to personnel administration as a result of various pieces of legislation, such as, the Public Service Act of 1995, the Labour Act of 1992, the Social Security Act of 1994, and the Affirmative Action (Employment) Act of 1998.
Department of Public Service Information Technology Management
Major objectives for the Department of Public Service I. T. Management are:
1. To provide service concerning the development and maintenance of up-to-date and viable computer information base.
2. To provide operational data services; develop and maintain systems; investigate computer related needs; recommend appropriate systems; control the acquisition of hardware and software in the entire public service through Tender Board; draw up hardware/software specifications for the invitation of tenders; and evaluate delivered goods and services.
Day-to-day work of this directorate can, therefore, be accessed in terms of the following functional specifications or categories: Technical Support, Systems Development, and Systems Analysis.
During the period 1991-1999, the directorate undertook a number of initiatives as follows:
1. Developing an IT policy for the public service and establishing the future of ICL Mainframe computer.
2. Developing security policy to govern the operation of a government Intranet and Internet network.
3. Developing an Integrated Human Resource Information Management System for the public service and using it to test the functionality of the government network.
4. Developing a FiveYear Public Service IT Master Plan.
5. Conducting computer based training or multimedia- based training for public servants with a view to making them fully computer literate and creating an IT culture within the public service.
6. To continue with moulding of the directorate into a strong IT professional team that is geared towards achieving improved performance of the Public Service.
Many of these goals were achieved as follows:
1. IT policy for the public service was finalised in 1993 when Cabinet approved the Information Technology policy document.
2. Installation of security measures at the mainframe computer site was achieved in 1995. Fire fighting, smoke detectors and access control with cameras were installed at the mainframe site.
3. In 1994, the directorate was moved to a secure site and established government’s one stop Information Centre. Intranet/Internet Gateway was achieved in 1996.
4. The fibre-optic cables and data lines were installed to interconnect the various offices, ministries and agencies and linking them to the government Intranet/Internet Gateway.
5. A security policy to govern the operation of government Intranet/Internet was finalised in 1998. The policy deals with security enforcement regarding operations of Internet/Intranet, and classified information whose access is limited to government officials only.
6. Development of a Five Year IT Master Plan has not yet been achieved as we are still awaiting an IT Expert to assist with its drafting.
7. A Human Resources Information Management System (HRIMS) has been developed to a certain degree. Specifically, system development as per the requirements of Department of Public Service Management has been completed. Specifications for HRIMS file servers were issued to all offices, ministries, and agencies last year to enable them to acquire appropriate equipment to link them to government. So far, six offices, ministries, and agencies are connected to the government Intranet/Internet Gateway and are now running the HRIMS.
8. Since 1996, when the Virtual Learning Centre was commissioned, a total of 5950 government personnel, both, IT and computer end-users, have been trained.
9. Moulding the directorate into a strong personnel professional team has been achieved to a significant degree.
Amongst many systems that were analysed, developed, implemented, tested and maintained by the directorate, the following are the major ones:
1. Analysis, development, implementation and testing of water and electricity billing system for Ongwediva, Ondangwa and Rundu Town Council, for the Ministry of Local Government and Housing.
2. Analysis, development, implementation and testing of a Ex-Combatant Registration System for the committee of Deputy Ministers on Ex-Combatants.
3. Analysis, development, implementation and testing of Crime Information Management System for NAMPOL, Ministry of Home Affairs.
4. Maintenance of Citizenship System for the Ministry of Home Affairs.
5. Installation of communications infrastructures between the office of the Prime Minister and the Directorate of Elections.
6. Maintenance of National Firearms Registration, Control, and Licensing System for NAMPOL, Ministry of Home Affairs.
7. Medical Stores Stock Control System for Ministry of Health and Social Services.
8. Human Resources Information Management System for the Department of Public Service Management in the Office of the Prime Minister:
9. Inspection of newly procured hardware/software to ensure compliance with specifications.
10. Inventory of all PCs and software in the public service to determine Y2K compliance and eliminate software piracy. The directorate faces a number of challenges as follows:
1. Promoting management's understanding and undivided support for successful implementation of government’s Intranet/Internet project.
2. Retention of qualified people who leave because of better salaries being offered elsewhere.
3. Overcoming an acute shortage of IT skilled personnel.
4. Promotion of an IT culture and encouraging its use in the day to day work of the public service staff members.
President’s Economic Advisory Council
Overall Objectives
The President’s Economic Advisory Council (PEAC) was established in August 1997 in the spirit of good governance and transparency. The overarching objective of PEAC is to promote free-flow of information and to strengthen co-operation, collaboration and co-ordination between the public and private sector to enhance mutual understanding by the social partners of macro economic and sectoral policies and strategies for the restructuring and diversification of the Namibian economy .
PEAC’s specific terms of reference are as follows:
1. To advise the President and government on the creation and sustenance of an enabling environment in which all forms of business can flourish and contribute to the socio-economic development.
2. To stimulate pro-active role of the private sector and to attract foreign direct/indirect investment to Namibia.
3. To encourage a participatory development process through economic empowerment and rapid expansion of employment opportunities in the productive sectors.
4. To provide free-flow of information between the stake holders, and to encourage popular participation in policy development, especially fiscal and monetary policies.
5. To provide a forum for developing private sector's sense of ownership and commitment to the government's development agenda.
6. To undertake periodic reviews of international, regional and sub-regional economic situations and their impact on the Namibian economy.
PEAC operates through two types of standing committees, namely, macro standing committees and sectoral committees.
Macro standing committees and sectoral standing committees include:
1. Standing Committee on Creating an Enabling Environment for the National Economy and Deepening Public-Private Sector Exchange of Information.
2. Standing Committee on Monitoring Overall Development, Employment and Fiscal Policies and Programmes.
3. Standing Committee on Namibia in Global Economy.
4. Standing Committee on Agriculture, Fisheries and Land Use.
5. Standing Committee on Industrial Development.
6. Standing Committee on Tourism.
PEAC also comprises a co-ordinating committee of the council to facilitate the work of the council and further promote the free-flow of information, co-operation and collaboration between government and the private sector. The committee co-ordinates all activities of the council with the administrative and technical support from the PEAC Secretariat. Membership of this consists of all chairpersons of the sub-committees and prominent individuals, economic oriented ministries/agencies and parastatals.
Within a short space of time, PEAC has proven to be an instrument of cardinal importance as far as free-flow of information, transparency, and macro-economic management are concerned.
The establishment of this institution is provided for under Section 3 of the Electoral Act, as the exclusive authority to direct, supervise and control any election in Namibia. The Directorate of Elections performs the administrative functions of the Electoral Commission in terms of Section 11 of the Act. The statutory separation of responsibility between the Electoral Commission and the Directorate of Elections is an excellent institutional arrangement. This practice has gained momentum, and has been praised by research academics on electoral matters. Namibia has developed and maintained a stable electoral system where commissioners serve on a part-time basis, while the directorate facilitates and co-ordinates electoral activities between itself, the commission, the public, political parties, government and the international institutions.
As per the Electoral Amendment Act, 30 of 1998, the Directorate of Election has become a semiautonomous entity. The aforementioned Act introduces some fundamental changes in the structural re-organisation of the directorate, appointment of commissioners and director of elections.
Achievements of the Directorate of Elections include:
Elections as a central factor towards democratisation, are held in many countries. As such, national, regional and international institutions are brought together through seminars, workshops and conferences in which the Namibian electoral institutions have been participating. Invitation of the Namibian electoral institutions to participate in such fora indicates a recognition of the country's political stability and democratic electoral system and practice.
The continuous voters registration process and the supplementary registration conducted before every election have made the system efficient and accommodative of many citizens who need to register. The computerisation of the electoral system work has further advanced the system to a greater extent. As a result, 156 795 registered voters for Local Authorities Elections in (1992) increased to 188 303 registered voters in 1998. Furthermore, registered voters for the Regional Councils Election increased from 534 437 in 1992 to 738 870 voters in 1998.
At the electoral Review Workshop held in March 1999 and organised by the Directorate of Elections, two important decisions were made, namely, the appointment of regional co-ordinators and the establishment of constituency advisory committees in all regions.
The Electoral Commission values the role of civic/voter education in enticing and mobilising citizens to vote during every electoral process. Since 1996, civic/voter-education in Namibia has been financed through foreign donor agencies. However, the reduction on the directorate’s budget this current financial year has totally derailed the voter education programme to a minimum particularly in the face of total absence of financial support from donors.
Vision 2030
To develop a professional civil service capable, competent and committed to leading Namibia into the twenty-first century as an efficient and competitive knowledge-based industrialised Nation.
Challenges for the New Millennium
The biggest challenge facing the Government is the size of the civil service including the size of Cabinet. To this end, plans are afoot to abolish the Ministry of Youth and Sport and to merge its sport function with the Ministry of Basic Education and Culture, and the youth function with either the Ministry of Higher Education, Vocational Training, Science and Technology or the soon to be created Ministry of Women Affairs. Given the fact that gender issues have now moved into centre stage, the Department of Women Affairs will be transformed into a fully-fledged ministry.
The Office of the Attorney General and the Ministry of Justice will also be merged as part of the rationalisation exercise. A deputy minister could be appointed in the Ministry of Justice as in-charge of the Attorney General’s office. The other challenges of the Office of the Prime Minister can be summarised as follows:
1. evisiting the question of the size of the civil service with the full realisation of the consequences of unemployment. Initiatives for commercialising certain government activities would be pursued further.
2. The continuation of the anti-corruption initiative which must result in an Anti Corruption Act as soon as possible. An independent body would be created to implement the provisions of the act.
3. The improvement of the Cabinet decision making process and implementation mechanism.
4. The improvement of the efficiency and effectiveness of the civil service with more focus on customer care and value for money.
5. To have a well organised Emergency Management System able to respond to disasters in a quick and effective manner.
6. To develop a structures for e-governance through the Directorate: Public Service Information Technology Management. This directorate would be elevated to the level of a department.
7. To have a well-trained, professional civil service which is responsive to the needs of the public or customers.