Effective competition review of Internet connectivity Contents

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CHAPTER 19

PUBLIC SECTOR MANAGEMENT

INTRODUCTION

19.1 The Public Sector is the principalactor in macro socio-economic policymaking infrastructure and an architect ofan enabling environment for nationaldevelopment. Public Sector managementcovers such aspects of management asproductivity management, andmanagement of human, financial andother resources. It involves an array ofactivities ranging from planning,formulation and implementation ofpolicies, programmes and projects forthe delivery of goods and services to thenation through a number of governmentand quasi-government institutionalarrangements. Consequently, it isimperative that the structures, policiesand operations of the Public Sectorrespond adequately to the socio-economic needs of the nation, asarticulated in the Vision 2016, and toglobal challenges. This implies that thequality of the Public Sector managementis essential to the fulfillment of thetheme of the National Development Plan9: ‘Towards Realization of the Vision2016: Sustainable and DiversifiedDevelopment through Competitivenessin the Global Market’.

19.2 The Directorate of Public ServiceManagement is mandated to provide theoverall policy framework in humanresource and productivity managementpractices. This chapter will, therefore,restrict its discussion of the role of theDirectorate of Public ServiceManagement in the management of the

Public Sector to the areas of humanresource and productivity management.Human resource and productivitymanagement policies and practices are tobe used in the Public Sector for effectivemanagement of the human capital andother resources required to deliver theNational Development Plan goals, andultimately achieve the nationalaspirations as enshrined in the Vision2016. The extent to which the goals ofthe National Development Plan 9, andconsequently those of the Vision 2016,are achieved is dependent on howeffectively the human and otherresources will be applied to the deliveryof the planned programmes. It is,therefore, necessary that the envisagedPublic Sector management policies andstrategies be succinctly spelt out in theNational Development Plan 9.

19.3 The implementation of thehuman resource management policiesand other management practices in thePublic Sector, developed within themacro policy framework provided by theDirectorate of Public ServiceManagement, are done throughinstitutional arrangements with specificfocus and clientele. This is intended tocater for the special needs of thecomponents of the Public Sector andeventually catalyze the enablement ofbusiness environment for nationaldevelopment.

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Institutional Framework

19.4 The institutional framework forthe Public Sector includes theDirectorate of Public ServiceManagement; ministries andindependent departments; parastatalorganizations; Department of LocalGovernment Service Management(DLGSM), in the case of the Ministry ofLocal Government; and the TeachingService Management (TSM), in the caseof the Ministry of Education. Thedetailed mandates of these institutionsare given below.

Local Government Service

19.5 This is catered for by theDepartment of Local GovernmentService Management (DLGSM). TheDepartment has statutory responsibility,derived from the Local GovernmentService Act, for the formulation andadministration of human resourcemanagement policies and otherconditions of service for the LocalAuthorities, within the general policyframework defined by the Directorate ofPublic Service Management. The reviewof the performance of the Departmentand the Local Authorities during theNDP 8 is covered under Chapter 20 onLocal Government.

Teaching Service

19.6 This is served by the TeachingService Management, which has astatutory responsibility, derived from theTeaching Service Act, for theformulation and administration of humanresource management policies and otherconditions of service for primary andsecondary school teachers. The reviewof the performance of the TeachingService Management during the NDP 8

is covered under Chapter 15 on theMinistry of Education.

Parastatal Sector

19.7 The parastatal sector is part ofthe broader Public Sector and consists ofquasi-governmental organizations andgovernment agencies, many of whichwere created or established through Actsof Parliament. Parastatal organizationsexist to provide goods and services,which Central Government is not wellplaced to provide. Government holdsequity in most parastatal organizationsand is represented in the Boards that runthem.

19.8 Given the statutoryresponsibilities of the parastatalorganizations, which has a bearing onthe image of the public sector,Government has direct interest inensuring that they operate in a mannerthat satisfy their statutory responsibilitiesand the expectations of theirstakeholders. Consequently, theGovernment decided, during NDP 7, toestablish the Public EnterprisesMonitoring Unit whose mandate, amongother responsibilities, is to analyze andadvise on the financial performance ofPublic Enterprises and suggestsmeasures for improving their efficiency.Government also passed a PrivatizationPolicy during NDP 8, which resulted inthe creation of the Public EnterprisesEvaluation and Privatization Agency(PEEPA). The objective of the policy isto enhance and improve the efficiency ofpublic enterprises.

19.9 Both the Public EnterprisesMonitoring Unit (PEMU) and the Public

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Enterprises Evaluation and PrivatizationAgency (PEEPA) being Governmentagencies responsible for the managementof the parastatal sector, are to managethe parastatal organizations based on thebroad management framework definedby the Directorate of Public ServiceManagement. The review of theperformance of parastatal organizationsduring NDP 8 is covered under thechapters of the ministries under whichthey fall.

Public Service

19.10 The Public Service consists of allministries and independent departmentsin Central Government. The Directorateof Public Service Management,however, has the statutory responsibilityfor administering the public service interms of the Public Service Act. TheDirectorate of Public ServiceManagement falls under the Ministry ofState President. Its principal role is tomanage and co-ordinate human resourceactivities in all government ministriesand departments. The ultimateobjectives are:

• To provide a stable, reliable andimpartial public service to thegovernment of the day;

• To increase the efficiency andeffectiveness of the government byproviding quality human resourceinput, so that the government’smultifarious services to the public,and its national developmentactivities are implemented;

• To effectively manage the publicservice within the framework ofgood service to the public, concernfor the welfare of employees,adherence to the Public Service Actand attainment of the national social-economic development objectives.

In carrying out its mandate, theDirectorate of Public ServiceManagement is also guided by itsVision, Mission, Values and StrategicPlan.

19.11 The DPSM also hasresponsibility for Botswana Institute ofAdministration and Commerce, which islargely responsible for in-servicetraining in the Public Service, theBotswana National Productivity Centreand the Institute of DevelopmentManagement. These institutions are alsothe channels through which modernmanagement practices are introduced inthe Public Sector by way of building thecapacity of the public officers inmanagement and administrative skills.

19.12 As stated above, the review ofthe implementation of human resourcemanagement policies and modernmanagement practices and their impacton service delivery by the othercomponents of the Public Sector arecovered under respective ministerialchapters. Reviewed below, therefore, arethose policy areas, which were plannedfor implementation by the Directorate ofPublic Service Management eitherdirectly or through coordination of othersectoral interventions.

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REVIEW OF PERFORMANCE DURING NDP 8

19.13 During National DevelopmentPlan 8, a number of initiatives wereundertaken to improve productivity andefficiency in the Public Service. Theseinitiatives included the introduction ofPublic Service Reform Programmes, aswell as improvement in human resourcemanagement policies and strategies. Thereview indicates what was planned forthe plan period, what was achievedunder each planned programme, thechallenges that were faced during theimplementation of the programmes andthose aspects of the planned programmesto be carried forward for implementationduring the National Development Plan 9.

The Public Service ReformProgramme

19.14 The Public Service ReformProgrammes includes PerformanceManagement System (PMS); WorkImprovement Teams (WITS);Computerized Personnel ManagementSystem (CPMS); Organization andMethods (O&M); Privatization;Performance Based Reward System(PBRS); Parallel Progression; ScarceSkills; Job evaluation; Localization; andDecentralization.

19.15 The functions of the PerformanceManagement System, Organisation andMethods Reviews and WorkImprovement Teams are different butcomplementary strategies aimed atimproving productivity in the PublicService. Whereas PMS is primarilyconcerned with the formulation andimplementation of short to long-termplans for improving productivity, O&MReviews are aimed at the achievement ofGovernment plans and policies by

clarifying and aligning ministerial goals,objectives and functions toorganisational structures. WITS, on theother hand, is a strategy, which is used todetect and solve problems, resultingfrom implementation of policies andprogrammes.

i) Performance Management Systems

19.16 The system is intended tofacilitate the introduction andmanagement of change in ministries anddepartments, as well as instil a culture ofmanaging performance and producingresults as expected by the nation. Itsmain objectives are to improveindividual and organisationalperformance in a systematic andsustainable way; to provide a ministerialplanning and change managementframework that is linked to theGovernment planning and budgetingprocesses; and to enable Government toimprove performance and enhance itscapacity to provide efficient servicedelivery to Batswana. PMS is, therefore,a strategy that helps ministries andindependent departments to define theirfuture and design how to reach thedesired destination.

19.17 The Performance ManagementSystem was introduced in all ministriesand departments during NDP 8, througha five-year project, which started in1999, and ends in 2004. The mainactivity was the installation of theSystem, which comprised training thepublic service leadership on PMS andchange management, development of thepublic service vision, ministerial visionstatements and strategic plans, and thedevelopment of annual performance

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plans (APPs) to deliver the strategies.To date, all ministries and independentdepartments have developed theirstrategic plans and annual performanceplans (APPs).

19.18 To effectively manage theirstrategic plans, ministries andindependent departments are to measuretheir performance and review theirprogress quarterly. Most ministries andindependent departments carry outquarterly reviews. However, most ofthem have not been able to measure theirperformance using the standardmeasurement tools. The problem hasbeen identified and addressed andministries are to start measuring theirperformance to support their reviewsfrom now through to NDP 9 period.

19.19 Ministries and independentdepartments were also required tocascade PMS philosophy and principlesdown to the lowest levels, afterdeveloping their corporate strategic andannual performance plans, to enabletheir staff to understand, appreciate andsupport PMS initiatives. The rate ofcascading PMS has varied from oneorganization to another, depending ontheir capacity to undertake this.However, in the majority of cases,education and PMS awareness has noteffectively reached the staff at themiddle and lower levels of theministries. The cascading process isscheduled for completion during NDP 9,while the education process willcontinue throughout the project period.

19.20 Other PMS activities planned forimplementation during the NDP 8include introduction of PMS to LocalAuthorities, development ofPerformance based reward system,

review of the performance appraisalinstrument and mid-term evaluation ofthe PMS project. The process ofintroducing PMS to Local Authorities,which is considered to have greaterimpact on overall government servicedelivery, has been started and will takemost part of NDP 9. The development ofperformance based reward system;performance contract and review ofperformance appraisal instruments havealso started and are to be completedbefore the end of NDP 8. Mid-termevaluation of the PMS project has beenundertaken. The result of the evaluation,which was conducted after two and halfyears into the implementation of theproject, indicated that the project isgenerally well on course. However, anumber of recommendations were madeto facilitate effective and focusedimplementation of the project. Therecommendations have been accepted bythe government and have beenprogrammed for implementation fromnow through to NDP 9.

19.21 The major challenge faced duringthe implementation of PMS was theentrenched paradigms among someleaders, which tended not to support theintroduction of PMS in ministries. PMSwas viewed by such leaders as anotherprogramme destined to fail. This sloweddown the implementation of theprogramme. The other major challengewas the difficulty that ministries facedgenerally with the application of themeasurement tools. This has beenaddressed and it is hoped that ministrieswill be able to apply the tools from nowonwards. However facilitating ministriesin the use of measurement tools willcontinue during NDP 9.

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19.22 The other big challenge is thepublic expectation for better servicedelivery by the Public Service since theintroduction of PMS. This expectationhas not been met and it is the concern ofthe government that reasonable progressis made during NDP 9. The introductionof PMS at the Local Authority level andthe decision by ministries to concentrateservice delivery on key priority areasamong other strategies will help toaddress this concern.

ii) Work Improvement Teams

19.23 The WITS strategy wasintroduced in the Public Service in 1993.The strategy seeks to foster team spirit,commitment to work and a mindset thatseeks excellence. It is one of thestrategies used in PMS to facilitate theidentification and solution of problemsat the operational level in ministries andindependent departments.

19.24 Training of WITS members,together with the execution of projectscontinued during NDP 8. To date, 565facilitators and well over 2,500 teamleaders have been trained. More thansixteen WITS awareness sessions havebeen held for top managers, while 1,000teams have been registered compared tothe planned 1150. Over 700 projectshave been undertaken of which morethan 400 have been completed. As a wayof publicizing the WITS programme andthe benefits it can bring, a nationalconvention has been held annually forthe past five years. The annual event hasalso been used to reflect on the progressmade and challenges encountered in theimplementation of WITS during the yearunder review.

19.25 The Commonwealth Secretariatevaluated WITS programme in 1998 andvaluable recommendations were madefor its improvement. Since then therehave been signs of positive work culture,commitment to work and concern forcustomers’ needs, which is e volving inthose ministries and departments thathave taken WITS seriously. Forinstance, the impact of the application ofWITS principles has been remarkable atthe Botswana Police Force as evidencedby public acknowledgement of thequality of their service delivery. Theapplication of WITS principles toimprove service delivery by ministriesand independent departments will bepromoted vigorously during NDP 9period. To ensure that WITS iseffectively used in the Public Service,more focus will be put on monitoring itsimpact on service delivery.

19.26 The introduction of PMS posed aserious conceptual challenge to WITSbecause it was generally believed thatPMS would replace WITS. This wasbased on the misunderstanding of thefunctional relationship between the tworeform strategies. WITS and PMS aretwo sides of the same coin and as such adecision has been made to integrate themso that the two strategies can be usedeffectively to achieve the bestperformance result for the organizations.

iii) Computerisation of PersonnelManagement Systems

19.27 In 1997, the Directorate of PublicService Management embarked on thecomputerisation of all the personnelrecords and posts in the Public Servicethrough the Computerisation ofPersonnel Management System (CPMS)Project. The project involves the

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installation of human resourcesapplications and it comprises fourdifferent phases, namely:

θ Pilot Phaseθ Roll-out Phaseθ Enablement Phase andθ Enrichment Phase

19.28 The pilot and roll out phaseshave been completed. Work has startedon the Enablement Phase and willcontinue into NDP 9. The completion ofthe roll out of the system has resulted inthe establishment of a core humanresource management system in everyministry and independent department.Each Human Resource Officer ingovernment now has a PersonalComputer (PC) connected via theGovernment Data Network (GDN) to theComputerised Personnel ManagementSystem. Approximately 400 HumanResource Officers in ministries andindependent departments have beentrained in the use of the Lotus Notes e-mail, Infinium Human Resource systemand the online DPSM policy database.

19.29 Despite the progress made so far,difficulties continue to be encountered inthe usage of the Computerised PersonnelManagement System. Some ministriesdo not regularly update data on thesystem with all the changes taking place.This affects the quality of data.Ownership of the system by ministries isstill a challenge and DPSM iscontinually encouraging them to takefull responsibility for the ownership ofthe information and the system. Therehave also been some instances whereofficers who were trained and re-trainedon the system have been assigned otherduties thus affecting the management ofthe system. DPSM has put appropriate

measures in place to address theseproblems.

19.30 The Teaching ServiceManagement, the Botswana PoliceService and the Local Authorities arealso computerising their human resourcemanagement systems. As a long-termstrategy to ensure the sustainability ofthe systems, in terms of maintenance andoperational costs and to ensuremaintenance of data-quality, thedepartments are co-operating with theAccountant General to develop a systeminterlinking the payroll and the humanresource management systems.

iv) Organisation and Methods (O&M)

19.31 Organisational reviews are usedto align ministerial goals, objectives andfunctions with its vision and mission anddetermine the core functions of aministry, thereby facilitating theidentification of functions to beconsidered for privatisation,commercialisation and contracting out. Italso involves the review of ministerialpolicies and procedures and re-engineering of its processes to facilitateeffective implementation of its mandate.It, therefore, facilitates effectivemanagement of organizations throughrationalisation of their organisationalstructures. This function supportsPerformance Management Systembecause it provides an enablingenvironment for its implementation.

19.32 A review of overall governmentportfolio responsibilities was undertakenduring NDP 8. The purpose of thereview was to identify, rationalise andregroup related sectoral portfolioresponsibilities as well as eliminateduplications and overlaps of government

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portfolio responsibilities acrossministries. In addition, O&M reviewswere conducted and finalised duringNDP 8 for the following institutions:Administration of Justice; Ministry ofForeign Affairs and InternationalCooperation; Student Career Services;Grants and Loans; UNESCO; SocialServices; Prisons and Rehabilitation;Government Aided Training Institutions(BIAC); Ministry of Trade and Industry;National Registration; Lands andHousing, Environment, Wildlife andTourism; and Labour and SocialSecurity.

19.33 Work is currently in progress onthe O&M reviews of the Ministriesand Departments of Local Government,Agriculture, Health, Directorate ofPublic Service Management, Office ofthe President, Health, Architecture andBuilding Services and Electrical andMechanical Services. Work is about tostart on the O&M review of theDepartments of the Auditor General andAttorney General’s Chambers. All thesereviews are to be completed during NDP8. More reviews will be carried outduring NDP 9 as most ministries andindependent departments align theirstructures and functions to their mission.

19.34 Due to increased demand forrestructuring by ministries anddepartments and capacity constraints, theDirectorate has allowed ministries anddepartments to engage privatemanagement consultants. To facilitatethis, the Directorate has developedcomprehensive guidelines for themanagement and monitoring of privatemanagement consultants in order toensure value for money to government.

19.35 The impact of past O&M reviewson the performance of ministries anddepartments has not been evaluatedowing to the absence of a propermonitoring and evaluation mechanism.Following O&M reviews, mostministries tended to implement onlythose recommendations that would givethem more resources, particularly moreposts, at the expense of other equallyimportant recommendations, thusaffecting the intended result of thereviews.

v) Privatisation

19.36 The government embarked onprivatisation so as to improve productivityand efficiency in the delivery of services bythe public sector. Privatisation entailsdivesting non-core functions to the privatesector, while Government remains with theresponsibility to provide an enablingenvironment, infrastructure and essentialservices like health, education and transport.

19.37 The contribution of the Directorateof Public Service Management to theprivatisation policy goals is through itsinvolvement in the implementation of PMSstrategy and O&M reviews of ministries andindependent departments. PMS strategy andO&M help ministries and independentdepartments to establish their core businessand identify those functions which can beconsidered for privatisation,

commercialisation and outsourcing.

vi) Performance Based Reward System(PBRS)

19.38 Performance Based RewardSystem (PBRS) is intended to linkindividual employee performance torewards so as to facilitate retention ofgood officers, encourage goodperformance, and discourage poor ornon-performance. Work on the

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development of PBRS is scheduled forcompletion before the end of NDP 8,while the actual implementation of thesystem will be done during NDP 9.

vii) Performance Contract

19.39 The development andimplementation of PBRS is intended tofacilitate the introduction of performancecontract for senior officers in the PublicService. The implication of this will bethat employment in the Public Servicefor this category of employees will bebased purely on performance anddelivery as per their contract. Thedevelopment of performance contractsystem will be concluded during theNDP 8 and implemented during NDP 9.

viii) Performance Appraisal

19.40 For effective management ofperformance based reward system andperformance contract, an appropriateperformance appraisal instrument isrequired. The current performanceappraisal instrument is being revised tofacilitate this. The revision will becompleted during the NDP 8, while itsimplementation will be done duringNDP 9.

ix) Training and Localisation

19.41 Localisation targets havecontinued to be difficult to meet duringNDP 8. The reasons for this are that:

(a) Government continues to loseskilled and educated manpowerto other sectors of the economy,which offer higher remunerationpackages than government; and

(b) In the past three years, theeconomy has been losing skilledmanpower through death.

This has resulted in situations whereGovernment is compelled to recruitexpatriates, thus worsening thelocalisation situation.

19.42 The focus of training during theNDP 8 has been to redirect the placement oftrainees to in-country training and the regionin order to reduce the costs of training toGovernment and provide training for morepublic officers. This strategy will continueto be pursued during NDP 9.

x) Decentralisation of Human ResourceManagement Functions

19.43 Decentralisation of humanresource management functions from theDirectorate of Public ServiceManagement (DPSM) to ministries wasanother reform implemented duringNDP 8. It covered human resourcefunctions for posts up to D1 level. Theprimary objective of the decentralisationwas to give Permanent Secretaries fullcontrol on all matters relating to themanagement of human resource in theirministries. This has enhanced effectiveand timely decision making on staffmatters at ministry level. An evaluationof the impact of the decentralizationprocess will be done during NDP 9.

xi) Decentralization of other functions

19.44 To empower PermanentSecretaries to effectively deliver on theirstrategic plans, it was resolved by theProductivity Improvement Committee(PIC Force) that certain functions of theMinistry of Finance and DevelopmentPlanning; Ministry of Works, Transportand Communication; State President;

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Ministry of Lands and Housing, Ministryof Environment, Wildlife and Tourism;Ministry of Labour and Home affairs;and Attorney General Chambers bedecentralized to other ministries anddepartments. It is anticipated that theenvisaged decentralization will startbefore the end of the NDP 8 andcontinue during NDP 9.

xii) Parallel Progression Scheme

19.45 The parallel progression schemewas introduced during NDP 7. Itsobjective was to improve careerprospects for Artisans, Technicians andProfessionals and retain them in theService. A review was undertakenduring the NDP 8 to establish whetherthe Scheme met its primary objective ornot, following which Governmentdecided to abolish the upgrading of postsunder which officers used to beautomatically promoted. However, thesalary structures developed under theparallel progression scheme have beenretained as they offer better careerprogression paths for technical andprofessional cadres.

xiii) Scarce Skills Grades Scheme

19.46 Government took a decision in1998 to introduce scarce skills grades inthe Public Service. The introduction ofthe scarce skill grades was in recognitionof the need to attract and retain localpersonnel with certain critical and rareskills.

19.47 However, the introduction of thescheme overlooked certain criticalfactors in the determination of scarceskill grades and the identification ofcadres that were to benefit from thosegrades. This resulted in many

inconsistencies in the implementation ofthe scheme, which distorted the PublicService salary structure. For example, itexcluded other cadres that qualifiedwhile including some that should nothave qualified. This caused widespreaddisgruntlement amongst public officers,and in some instances, litigation againstGovernment.

19.48 In view of the problemsencountered, Government decided toabolish the scarce skills grades andreplace it with a scarcity allowance. Ascarce skill compensation scheme, whichwill have a firm criterion for determiningoccupations in the Public Service thatshould attract payment of scarcityallowance as well as the rates to be paidas scarcity allowance will be developed.The process to establish the scheme hasstarted and will be implemented duringNDP 9

xiv) Job Evaluation

19.49 Government introduced a JobEvaluation System called PattersonDecision Band System in 1988. Thesystem uses decision making to measurethe relative responsibilities of jobs.

19.50 The Job Evaluation System hasnot been evaluated since its introductionto determine its strengths andweaknesses. Government has, therefore,decided that the system be evaluated todetermine its relevance in view of thedevelopments that have taken place overtime. This will be commenced during theNDP 8 and completed during the courseof NDP 9.

19.51 The 1998 Salaries ReviewCommission and a consultancy that wascommissioned in 2001 to review the

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salaries and allowances in the PublicService recommended the establishmentof a pay structure peculiar to theBotswana Police Service. In addition,the Consultancy recommended theinclusion of Botswana Prisons Service,Teaching and Health Services in thereview. It also recommended the reviewof the job evaluation system currentlybeing used in the Public Service.

19.52 The process of establishing a paystructure for the Botswana PoliceService, Botswana Prisons Service,Health service personnel, and teachers isin progress and is scheduled forcompletion before the end of NDP 8.

HUMAN RESOURCEMANAGEMENT ANDDEVELOPMENT POLICIES ANDSTRATEGIES

19.53 These policies include those onRemote Area Service Allowance; PublicOfficers Pension Scheme; Early Exit;and Industrial and Employee Relations.These policies were reviewed in aneffort to produce human resourcemanagement policies that wouldfacilitate the attraction and retention ofqualified and competent public officers.

i) Remote Area Service Allowance(RASA)

19.54 The Remote Area ServiceAllowance was introduced in 1996 toreplace Local and Frontier Allowances.The purpose of RASA is to inducepublic officers to work in remote areasand to cushion them against severehardships experienced in such areas.Such hardships relate to the availabilityof and accessibility to health,

educational facilities and other socialamenities.

19.55 The major challenge with theimplementation of RASA is that theparameters that were established at thebeginning of the Scheme may no longerbe relevant or appropriate. The policywill, therefore, be reviewed during theNDP 8 to establish the appropriatenessof the parameters or the relevance ofRASA in view of the developments inthe areas of the country that used toattract RASA.

ii) Public Officers Pension Scheme

19.56 The Botswana Public OfficersPension Fund commenced on the 1st

April 2001. Government contributes17.5% whilst Public Officers 2.5% forthe first two years, i.e. up to 31st March,2003. From 1st April 2003 Governmentwill contribute 15% whilst PublicOfficers contribute 5%. The schemecovers the whole Public Service,including Central Government, LocalAuthorities, Teaching Service, BotswanaDefence Force, Botswana Police Serviceand Botswana Prisons Service. Themembership of the Scheme stood at21633 as at 1st April 2002.

iii) Early Exit Policy

19.57 Government approved aprivatisation policy during NDP 8 with aview to improving Public Serviceefficiency and productivity by makingthe Public Service concentrate on itscore functions and leave the otherfunctions to be provided by the privatesector.

19.58 Privatisation will involvecorporatisation of government

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departments; the use of leases andmanagement contracts; and partial or insome cases full transfer of ownership tothe private sector. When suchtransformation process takes place in aministry or department, it is likely tonecessitate termination of services ofsome of the staff in the affected ministryor department. To ensure that theaffected people do not lose theirbenefits, the Government is developingan early exit policy, which is to befinalised before the end of NDP 8 andimplemented during the course of NDP9.

iv) Industrial and Employee Relations

19.59 Government planned to promote,during National Development Plan 8,good employee relations at all levels ofthe Public Service through theestablishment of well structuredconsultative machinery. This wasintended to facilitate effectivemanagement of labour disputes andcollective bargaining process. Theestablishment of the consultativemachinery included the resuscitation ofthe consultative structures at the localand regional levels i.e. at the Regionaland Local Works Committees. It alsoincluded making the DistrictCommissioners the chairpersons for theRegional Works Committees, whichhave been incorporated into the DistrictDevelopment Committee annualprogram.

19.60 Documentation and evaluation ofthe staff inspections policy, and thereview of inspection processes andprocedures are some of the activities thatare being implemented during NDP 8and are to be concluded during NDP 9.

19.61 Major implementation challengesfaced during NDP 8 included persistentdemand by the union for the review ofminimum wage for the industrial classemployees to unsustainable levels, andunresolved labour disputes.

v) Others

19.62 The other policies which weredealt with during NDP 8 include thereview of some sections of the PublicService Act to facilitate thedecentralisation of human resourcesfunctions to ministries; development ofHIV/AIDS Code of Conduct for thePublic Service; the appointment ofexternal and local recruitment agenciesto facilitate the reduction of vacancylevels in the Public Service; and thereview of the General Orders andForeign Service Allowance. All these areto be completed during NDP 8.

Size and Structure of the PublicService

i) Central Government Establishment

19.63 Central Government manpowerestablishment grew from 72,083 posts in1997 to 77,277 posts in 2002/2003,representing an average annual rate ofgrowth of 1.3 percent. This is 0.2percentage points higher than the targetrate of growth of 1.1 set for NDP 8.Much of the growth in the manpowerestablishment can be attributed to:

θ pressure created by new projects orprojects which have increased inscope, contingencies or newlegislation, which required posts fornew facilities;

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θ underestimation of manpowerrequirements at plan preparationstage;

θ posts created inministries/departments as a result ofO&M reviews; and

θ accommodation of returning trainees.

19.64 The 1.3 percent average annualrate of growth achieved during NDP 8contrasts sharply with the 5.2 percentaverage annual rate of growth for theNDP 7 plan period. The major reasonfor this favourable outcome was thatministries and departments with highvacancy rates were denied new posts;instead, they were encouraged to utiliseexisting vacant posts throughconversions, transfers and redesignationsrather than creating new ones as a wayof optimising the utilisation of existingmanpower. This strategy also served toreduce the vacancy rate from 5% in NDP7 to an average 4% in NDP 8. However,this level of vacancy rate is still not closeenough to the target rate of 2% set forNDP 8 and effort will be made duringNDP 9 to reduce the vacancy rate to therequired level of 2%.

ii) Attrition

19.65 Employees normally leave PublicService by way of resignation,termination, death or retirement. Theavailable data on attrition for the period1997 to 2001 indicates that the majorityof employees left the public serviceduring NDP 8 through resignation asindicated in Chart 19.1 and Chart 19.2respectively and through death asindicated in figure 19.3 and Chart 19.4respectively. This is not surprising giventhe youthful composition of theBotswana Public Service as indicated inChart 19.5.

19.66 Historically, younger employeestend to be more mobile than olderemployees as they would not haveinvested a lot of time in theiremployment. Majority of employeeswho resigned from the service over the1997-2001 periods were in the 25-39 agecohort, while those who left throughdeath were concentrated in the 30-45 agecohort.

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Chart 19.1 Resignation by Age

0

50

100

150

200

20-24 25-29 30-34 35-39 40-44 45-49 50-54 55-59 60+

Age

Res

igna

tion

Source: Directorate of Public Service Management

Chart 19.2: Resignation by grade

0

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100

150

E-F D1-D2 D3-D4 CI-C2 C3-C4 B1-B2 B3-B5 A1-A2 A3

Grade

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atio

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Chart 19.3:Death by Age 1997-2001

0

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20 -24 25 -29 30 -34 35 -39 40 -44 45 -49 50 -54 55 -59

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ero

fD

eath


Chart 19.4: Death by Grade 1997 - 2001

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E -F D1- D2 D3 - D4 C1- C2 C3 - C4 B1- B2 B3 - B5 AI - A3

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fdea

th


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18-19

20-24

25-29

30-34

35-39

40-44

45-49

50-54

55-59

60+

0

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Age gr oup

Chart 19.5: Age of current Employees

Female

Male


19.67 Those who resigned from theService were mostly found in theprofessional and technical occupationsthat are afflicted by high demand andscarcity and could therefore commandhigher salaries elsewhere. Theseoccupations include engineers,architects, doctors, accountants,economists, lawyers, systems analysts,programmers, etc.

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Chart 19.6: Projected Retirement by year

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400

600

800

2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009

Year

Ret

irem

ents


Chart 19.7: Projected Retirements by Ministries/Depts

0100200300400500600700800900

1000

Parlia

men

t

State

Pres

MFDP

MLH

AM

OA

MO

EM

CIM

LG

MW

TC

MM

EWA

MO

H

Justi

ce

Attorn

ey

Audito

r

F/Affa

irs

Electio

n

Ombuds

man

MLH

&E

Ministriy/Dept

Ret

irem

ent


iii) Age Composition

19.68 The Public Service age profileindicated in figure 19.5 does notinclude the Teaching Service and thePolice Service. The age structureshows relatively young public servants.Over 70% of the people employed inthe Public Service fall within the 25-45age bracket while just over 20% fallbetween the ages of 45-60. Thosebelow the age of 20 years constitute

less than 4% of the total number ofemployees.

iv) Localisation Profile

19.69 Data from the ComputerisedPersonnel Management System showthat there are approximately 45,000employees in Central Government,excluding the Teaching Service, PoliceService, Local Government Serviceand Botswana Defence Force (BDF).Of the 45,000, approximately 1,050 or2% are expatriate officers on contract.

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The major employers of expatriateofficers are the Ministries of Healthand Works and Transport, whichemploy about 530 and just over 100expatriates respectively. The presenceof a sizeable number of expatriates inthe two ministries underscores thetechnical nature of these ministries.The Ministry of Foreign Affairs andInternational Cooperation also employsa sizeable number of expatriates.However, these are locally recruitedstaff in Botswana missions abroad.

v) Gender Distribution

19.70 Available data from theComputerised Personnel ManagementSystem shows that the overalldistribution of employees by gender isfairly proportional with a 50-50 splitbetween male and female officers.

However, the distribution alsoindicates that female officers dominatesome ministries and departments.Examples are the Ministries of Financeand Development Planning, Health,Education, Local Government and theDepartments of Administration ofJustice, Auditor-General, Directorateof Public Service Management,Attorney General’s Chambers,Ombudsman and Parliament. This isto be expected for the ministries ofEducation and Health becausehistorically, these ministries employmore females than males in the form ofteachers and nurses, respectively.

01,000

2,0003,0004,0005,0006,0007,0008,0009,000

10,000

Grade

Chart 19.8: Gender Dis t ribut ion by Grade

FemaleMale


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0

1000

2000

3000

4000

5000

6000

7000

Ministry

Chart 19.9: Gender Distribution by Ministry

F emale

Male


Note: 010 Parliament, 020 State President, 030 MFDP, 040 MLHA, 050 MoA, 060MoE, 070 MTI, 080 MLG, 090 MWT, 100 MMEWR, 110 MoH, 120 AoJ, 130Attorney General, 140 Auditor General, 150 MoFAIC, 160 IEC, 170 Ombudsman,180 MLH, 190 MCST, 200 MEWT

19.71 Ministries, which are dominatedby male employees, are those ofAgriculture, Minerals, Energy and WaterAffairs, Works and Transport, StatePresident, Trade and Industry,Environment, Wildlife and Tourism andthe Independent Electoral Commission.The incidence of male prevalence in StatePresident, Ministry of Trade and Industryand Ministry of Labour and Home Affairsis, in part, attributable to the Departmentsof Police, Prisons, Wildlife and Office ofthe President (Security Guards) whoemploy more males because of the natureof their work.

19.72 The gender distribution by gradeshows a strong female dominance in themiddle management levels; principally theC.3, C.2 and C1 grades while gradeshigher than C.1 show lower figures thanthe male officers as indicated in Chart19.8.

POLICIES AND STRATEGIESFOR MANAGING THE PUBLICSECTOR DURING NDP 9

19.73 The Public Sector, as stated inSection II, comprises the TeachingService, Local Authorities, parastatalorganizations and the Public Service.As an architect of an enablingenvironment for national development,the Public Sector is to facilitate therealization of the Vision 2016 goalsand the delivery of the nationaldevelopment plan. Hence, it must beefficient and effective in the deliveryof its core business, which requires theapplication of appropriate managementstrategies including PerformanceManagement System (PMS); WorkImprovement Teams (WITS);Computerization of PersonnelManagement System (CPMS);Organization and Methods reviews(O&M); rationalization of its functionsand right-sizing of its staffestablishment; and privatisation of its

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non-core functions. The policies andstrategies to be articulated for themanagement of the Public Sector,during the National Development Plan9, will also include plans for effectivesupervision to guarantee qualityservice delivery.

Supervision of the Public SectorInstitutions

19.74 Supervision of the TeachingService, the Local Authorities and theparastatal organizations are done bythe ministries they fall under. On theother hand, the Directorate of PublicService Management provides broadguidelines on human resourcemanagement and other managementpractices to be used by other ministriesin managing their day-to-dayoperations and the organizations thatfall under them. It also supervises theimplementation of the human resourcemanagement policies and reforminitiatives by ministries.

19.75 To ensure that these institutionsoperate efficiently and effectively,supervision by the ministries underwhich they fall are to be improved andmade output based with well-definedremedial strategies.

Review of the Public SectorPerformance

19.76 Structures for the review of thePublic Service performance are inplace in the form of MinisterialPerformance ImprovementCommittees (MPIC), PIC–Force andEconomic Committee of Cabinet(ECC). At the ministry level,Permanent Secretaries review theirperformance on the AnnualPerformance Plans with the Heads ofDepartment on a quarterly basis at theMinisterial Performance ImprovementCommittee meetings, while at the PIC-

Force level, Permanent Secretary to thePresident reviews the performance ofthe Public Service with PermanentSecretaries on a quarterly basis, basedon their respective AnnualPerformance Plans. On the other hand,His Excellency the President reviewsthe Performance of the Public Servicewith the ministers, based on theAnnual Performance Plans for theirministries, at the Economic Committeeof Cabinet on a half-yearly basis.These reviews are intended to facilitateeffective coordination and monitoringof the overall performance of thePublic Service.

19.77 Whereas ministries usuallyinclude parastatal organizations underthem in their ministerial performancereviews, reports emanating from thesereviews do not feature either at the PIC– Force or at the Economic Committeeof Cabinet and yet these organizationsalso implement public programmesfunded from the public coffers. Neitherare the reports on the Teaching Servicenor the Local Authorities reflected bythe Ministry of Education and theMinistry Local Governmentrespectively at either the PIC-Force orthe Economic Committee of Cabinet.

19.78 Considering that the TeachingService Management, the LocalAuthorities, and the parastatalorganizations deliver public goods andservices, their non-delivery wouldimpact negatively on the overallperformance of the public sector inparticular and the performance of theeconomy in general. In view of this, itis imperative that performance of theseinstitutions are also monitored andreviewed periodically to ensure thatthey perform within the standardsprescribed by the government.

19.79 Relevant ministries willarticulate policies and strategies for

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managing the Local Authorities, theTeaching Service, and the parastatalorganizations during the NationalDevelopment Plan 9 in the relevantchapters. However, the Directorate ofPublic Service Management willarticulate the policies and strategies formanaging the Public Service duringNDP 9 as detailed below and provide abroad management framework to guidethe rest of the public sector.

Public Service Reforms

i) Performance Management System

19.80 During NDP 9, the focus of thisprogramme will shift to the delivery ofthe strategic plans by ministries anddepartments. Emphasis will be placedon progress and performance onAnnual Performance Plans (APPs) byeach ministry. In addition, other keyenablers of the PMS will be put inplace during NDP 9 to furtherconsolidate sustenance of the system inthe Public Service. In this regard, it isintended to introduce a PerformanceBased Reward System in the PublicService. The system will linkindividual employee performance torewards so as to facilitate retention andencouragement of good performanceand to effectively discourage poor ornon-performance.

19.81 The system will also besupported by the introduction ofperformance contracts for publicofficers. It is expected that renewal,extension or termination of a contractwill be based purely on performanceand the rewards will be in directproportion to this performance. Inaddition, public officers will beintroduced to a new appraisalinstrument that focuses on theindividual' s performance andcompetencies. The instrument isexpected to facilitate effective and

objective appraisal of all employees inan endeavour to improve theirperformance and delivery.

19.82 NDP 9 will also see anincreased linkage of the PMS with theGovernment planning and budgetingprocesses. All future NDPs will alsobe focused on achieving the tenets ofVision 2016.

19.83 Furthermore, ministerialperformance reviews will beintensified and each ministry ordepartment will produce progressreports on their annual performanceplans (APPs) and the impact on theirstrategic goals on quarterly basis. Atthe end of each financial year, eachministry will produce an annual reportreflecting performance on the APPs,strategic goals and the NDP macroindicators. The annual report isexpected to inform Parliament on theperformance of each ministry whenconsidering ministries budgetaryrequests for subsequent financial years.

ii) Work Improvement Teams

19.84 During NDP 9, the utilisationof the Work Improvement Teamsstrategy will be intensified to furtherenhance performance improvementand efficiency. It is expected thatministries will increasingly use theteams to resolve problems, especiallythose impacting on the delivery ofservices to the nation. Training willalso be continued to ensure that teamsbecome much more effective inimproving service delivery.

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iii) Decentralisation of HumanResource Functions

19.85 The decentralisation of humanresource management functions toministries has necessitated theestablishment of Promotions, Trainingand Appointment Boards. TheDirectorate will continue to berepresented in these Boards in order toprovide expert support and advicewhenever this is required. Attendanceat Promotions, Training andAppointment Boards will also ensureconsistency of application of policiesand procedures and transparencythroughout the Public Service.

iv) Decentralization of other Functions

19.86 Recommendations of the PICForce Sub Committee on theDecentralization of other functionsreferred to under NDP 8 review will beimplemented during the course of NDP9 and an evaluation of its impact doneduring the same period.

v) Job Evaluation

19.87 A review and evaluation of thecurrent job evaluation system will beundertaken during NDP 9. The resultsof the evaluation will assistGovernment to decide whether thecurrent system of job evaluation shouldbe retained or whether a new system ofjob evaluation should be introduced.

vi) O&M Reviews of Ministries andDepartments

19.88 The reviews of the newMinistries of Environment, Wildlifeand Tourism; Communications,Science and Technology and theAttorney General’s Chambers willcommence during NDP 8 and will spillover into NDP 9.

19.89 The following sixteenMinistries and Departments will bereviewed during NDP 9:• Works and Transport• Minerals, Energy and Water

Resources• Ministry of Education• Ombudsman• Directorate on Corruption and

Economic Crime (DCEC)• Independent Electoral Commission• Labour and Home Affairs• Foreign Affairs and International

Cooperation• Administration of Justice• Finance and Development Planning• Agriculture• Trade and Industry• National Assembly• Botswana Police Service• Local Government• Lands and Housing• Environment, Wildlife and

Tourism

19.90 A monitoring and evaluationmechanism will be developed during NDP9 to facilitate the assessment of the impactof the O&M reviews on the efficiency andeffectiveness of the Public Service.

vii)Computerisation of PersonnelManagement Systems

19.91 The Directorate of PublicService Management will continuewith implementation of the remainingtwo phases of the ComputerisedPersonnel Management System. Thiscomprises the Enablement Phase andthe Enrichment Phase. Theimplementation of the EnablementPhase will cover the followingmodules:

• An absence module, which willallow government to record and

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analyse the absences taken byofficers.

• A recruitment module which willgive government the capability torecord personal details ofapplicants which can then be usedto match applicants to vacanciesacross government.

• A skills and competency modulewhich will allow government tosearch through the database forpeople with specific skills, findpositions that match an employee’sprofile for potential redeploymentor career development.

• An employee development module,which will link an officer’sperformance appraisal with hisdevelopment needs, training andcareer plans.

• A health and safety module, whichwill record details of all workplaceaccidents and incidences.

• A training administration module,which will greatly simplify theadministration of training. It willalso record all the training receivedby an officer.

• A benefits administration module,which will be used to record apost’s allocation of benefits and itsentitlement.

19.92 The Enrichment Phase of theComputerised Personnel ManagementSystem will cover the followingmodules or activities:

• Installing a manpower-planningmodule, which will assist inmanpower planning, forecastingand analysis of data available in theComputerised PersonnelManagement System.

• Re-engineering some of theDPSM’s processes to harmonisethem with the decentralisation ofhuman resource functions. The re-engineering will incorporateworkflow systems, which willautomate most of the humanresources activities of theDirectorate and the ministries.

• Installing a document managementsystem module. The objective ofinstalling this module is to reducethe paper flow within DPSM and toreduce the workload of theRegistry.

• Connecting the Government IDSystem to the CPMS. This way thegovernment will be able to matchthe officer’s details in the CPMSwith the officer’s photo in the IDsystem. This will allow any HRofficer in any ministry to access anofficer’s photo and his details onone screen at his desk.

19.93 It is envisaged that by installingall the various components of theCPMS, DPSM and all Ministries andIndependent Departments will have afully computerised HR System thatwill be of an excellent standard by theend of NDP 9.

viii) Privatisation

19.94 As stated in Section III of thischapter, the contribution of theDirectorate of Public ServiceManagement to the privatisation policygoals is through its involvement in theimplementation of PMS strategy andO&M reviews of ministries andindependent departments. PMSstrategy and O&M help ministries andindependent departments to establishtheir core business and identify thosefunctions which can be considered forprivatisation, commercialisation and

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contracting out. DPSM will facilitatethe privatisation initiatives in thePublic Service through the plannedO&M reviews and PMS activitiesduring NDP 9.

ix) Industrial and Employee Relations

19.95 With the ratification of theInternational Labour OrganisationConventions and the anticipatedunionisation of the public service, thefocus for the Directorate’s industrialrelations functions will now be onareas such as negotiation, collectivebargaining and grievance handling.Re-focusing on these areas will ensurecontinued labour stability andharmonious relations betweengovernment and employees.

19.96 The Directorate of PublicService Management also intends tonegotiate with the Manual WorkersUnion for the review of theRegulations of Industrial ClassEmployees (RIE) in order to bringthem in harmony with current labourlaws, especially the Employment Act.This will facilitate smoothadministration of the RIE issues.

19.97 Government has ratified ILOConvention 151, which will allow thepublic service to unionize. TheMinistry of Labour and Home Affairsis in the process of reviewing theEmployment and Trade and DisputesActs. The Directorate of Public ServiceManagement plans to review relevantsections of the Public Service Act toharmonize them with the abovementioned Acts during NDP 9 period.

19.98 Activities planned for NDP 9include discussions with the ManualWorkers Union to agree on periodicnegotiations regarding wage increases.This will help to avoid the current,frequent and unstructured form of

wage negotiations. A tradition will befollowed during NDP 9 where themarket forces and competition within aspecific industry will strategicallydetermine wage levels. Consequently,benchmarking will greatly influencethe wage structure.

19.99 During NDP 9 theconcentration of efforts in improvingIndustrial and Employee Relations willbe in building capacity in theinstitutions handling industrialrelations matters. This will be throughtraining, retraining and increasedmanpower compliment.

x) Localization

19.100 The existing policy onlocalization is considered adequate anddoes not require review. The problemresides with implementation. As partof the Public Service reforms, theDirectorate intends to develop alocalization monitoring strategy duringNDP 9. The strategy is intended toassist ministries to keep track of theirlocalization status.

xi) Training

19.101 The budgetary provision forPublic Service training will continue tobe reviewed, on an annual basis, with aview to achieving the objective ofhuman resources development duringNDP 9. Efforts are being made tointensify placement of trainees in theregion, as well as in other parts ofAfrica, with a view to reducing costsand increasing the number of publicofficers trained. Training NeedsAnalysis of the Public Service will becarried out during NDP 9 in order toensure that future training addressescritical areas of the Public Service.

19.102 In order to address the skillsgap created by loss of trained human

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resources through resignation anddeath, more opportunities will beopened for part-time study anddistance learning to enable largernumbers of officers to develop theirskills and competencies without havingto leave their jobs for institutionaltraining. To support this, Governmentwill consider offering advances toofficers for payment of school fees,where necessary and if it is deemedfeasible.

xii) Conditions of Service

19.103 The review of various humanresources policies, procedures andconditions of service is a continuousprocess for the Directorate. As a resultthe review of policies and otherconditions of service will continueduring NDP 9, as and when it is foundnecessary.

xiii) Size and Structure of thePublic Service

Reducing vacancies

19.104 In optimising the size of thePublic Service, the Directorate willensure that posts are allocated in linewith Government programmes andpriorities. Associated with thisstrategy is the issue of ensuring thatvacancies in the Public Service arereduced to an acceptable level of 2%.

19.105 The overall vacancy rateaveraged 4 percent during NDP 8. Inorder to reduce vacancies and tominimise the cost to Government, thefollowing measures will continue to beimplemented during NDP 9:

θ freezing the creation of new postswhere large numbers of vacanciesexist;

θ where appropriate, offeringcompetitive packages for rare orscarce skills, and for those postswhich have proved difficult to fill;

θ engaging external and localrecruitment agencies;

θ trading in vacant posts for otherpriority posts or those which haveproved difficult to fill;

θ working with ministries to identifylocals for accelerated promotionsin critical areas of scarcity;

θ maximising technical co-operationassistance;

θ abolishing or freezing posts whichhave been vacant for over twoyears.

POLICIES AND STRATEGIESFOR MANAGING PARASTATALORGANIZATIONS DURING NDP9

19.106 As mentioned in section II ofthis chapter, Government created thePublic Enterprises Monitoring Unit(PEMU) and Public EnterprisesEvaluation and Privatization Agency(PEEPA). The major responsibility ofthe Public Enterprises Monitoring Unitis to analyze the financial performanceof all Public Enterprises who arerequired to operate on commerciallines and advise on ways and measuresto improve their efficiency and setminimum performance criteria for theorganizations to follow.

19.107 One major factor, which oftenaffects the profitability of commercialpublic enterprises relates to operationalcosts and internal in-efficiencies. Inthis connection, PEMU will berequired to promote the use ofappropriate management practices in

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these organizations to ensure that poormanagement does not affect them.

19.108 DPSM, as Government advisoron Public Service management, willassist the management of PEMU andPEEPA to acquire relevantmanagement skills to enable themmanage the agencies appropriately.DPSM will also facilitate thedevelopment of an institutionalarrangement through which theproposals for the functions to beprivatized from the Public Service canbe discussed and decisions madebefore they are passed on to PEEPAfor action.

Botswana Institute ofAdministration and Commerce

19.109 The main objectives forBotswana Institute of Administrationand Commerce (BIAC) during NDP 9are to:

♣ Develop public officers in theneeded skills of AccountingSecretarial, Public Management,Computing and Communication.

♣ Increase access to BIACprogrammes through diversifiedmethods of delivery andattendance.

♣ Establish a second campus tofurther facilitate increased intake,subject to funding availability.

Table 19.1 BIAC Student EnrolmentProjections

Years Intake2002 6782003 7592004 8502005 9522006 1,0662007 1,1942008 1,338

Source: BIAC

19.109 The possibility of introducingnew courses during NDP 9 will beexplored. Research and consultancyunit will also be set up to coordinate allthe research and consultancies to beundertaken by the faculty. This will bean important venture in the advent ofthe Institute becoming self-supportingor a semi-autonomous entity.

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