Munawwar Alam Adviser, Commonwealth Local Government Forum Honorary Senior Lecturer, International Development Department, University of Birmingham

Transcription

1 Medellin, Colombia June 2015 Munawwar Alam Adviser, Commonwealth Local Government Forum Honorary Senior Lecturer, International Development Department, University of Birmingham

2 Session IV: Capacity Building for Innovative Solutions in Public Service Delivery 1. What strategic capacities and mechanisms are needed to promote innovative public service delivery that yields sustainable outcomes? 2. What are the current issues and challenges in building strategic government capacity? 3. How to build institutional capacity which will inform better public service delivery for sustainable development? 4. What role does government-wide strategic planning and governance play in building such state capacity?

3 1. What strategic capacities and mechanisms are needed to promote innovative public service delivery that yields sustainable outcomes? (1) What is innovation in public service delivery? Innovation is new but not necessarily unique. Innovation is experimental Dare to fail. (2) Inherent features of strategic capacities Capacity is holistic Complex systems perspectives Public sector innovation can have different approaches - such as new legislations, training public servants, or even building capacity of the private sector.

4 (3) What is needed at strategic level? Link capacity to larger strategic objectives but be flexible. Post-2015: A paradigm shift. Take strategic policy shift (e.g. from Decentralisation policy to Urbanization policy. Domestic leadership is an important aspect of country-led change: Leaders are de facto change agents. a. Capacity development is an endogenous process b. The starting point should be existing capacities. c. A political thinking.

5 Is it only about public sector? South-South or North-South? - Start reform strategy with an open mind Innovation could be cross-sectoral rather than restricted to any particular aspect of public sector. Training programmes are still relevant (?)

6 2. Current Issues and Challenges in Building Strategic Government Capacity. Political instability, conflict and post-conflict situations. Bad governance Corruption and lack of accountability De-motivated public administration Lack of capacity to innovate or modernize in public service. Lack of realization All is well approach. Lack of access to good international practices in public sector innovation. Gender perspective.

7 3. Building Institutional Capacity for Sustainable Development. Institutional Development is multi-dimensional - all three levels (individual, organisational and institutional) are inter-related. Institutional innovation is dynamic. Effective institutions and policies are essential for sustainable development. Theory of change. Institutional resilience. a. Countries go through transitions at several points in time. b. Sometimes deeper governance, fragility or institutional issues are linked with specific sectoral outcomes

8 To sum up: Innovation in public service should be internalised. Identify champions of change Create institutional capacities that nurture change agent. Give incentives to potential agents of change Out of box solution should be rewarded Give allowance for Calculated risk taking. Priority to be given to institutions fulfilling core state functions.

9 Depending upon country context core state functions could be: Security Sector (Conflict, fragility) Rule of Law / justice sector Fiduciary Management, Public financial management Public Administration Basic service delivery

10 4. Role of government-wide strategic planning and governance in building state capacity. The Government-Wide strategic planning ensures: Horizontal and vertical coordination between spheres and levels of government; Eliminates situations in which different policies undermine each other; Makes better use of scarce resources; Creates synergies by bringing together different stakeholders in a particular policy area; and Offers citizens seamless rather than fragmented access to services.

11 Core governance functions. (legitimate politics, security, justice, economic foundations, and revenue and services). When the basics are right existing capacities can be enhanced. Fire fighting mode. Most policy making is reactive and uncoordinated. Thus government-wide strategic planning is crucial.

12 Good governance. A dysfunctional and corrupt public administration impedes innovation. Public sector incentive systems are better off emphasizing the impact of employees work on the well being of others and on the community and society. (Raffles Review, June 2015, UNDP GCPSE). ICTs for development and innovation. Capacity development of public sector in this area is critical.

13 Thank you.