TRAINING PROGRAMME FOR CAPACITY BUILDING IN PUBLIC SECTOR REFORM AND MANAGEMENT IN SIERRA LEONE

Transcription

1 African Training and Research Centre in Administration for Development المرآز الا فريقي للتدريب و البحث الا داري للا نماء Centre Africain de Formation et de Recherche Administratives pour le Développement TRAINING PROGRAMME FOR CAPACITY BUILDING IN PUBLIC SECTOR REFORM AND MANAGEMENT IN SIERRA LEONE AIDE MEMOIRE 2003 Bd. Mohammed V, Pavillon International P.O. Box 310, Tangier, Morocco Tel: (212) Fax: (212) cafrad@cafrad.org Web Site: Bd. Mohammed V, Pavillon International B.P. 310 Tanger, Maroc

2 Background and Justification Human capacity building has become a challenging goal for governments and institutions. Huge amounts of resources are set aside every year for the purpose of developing human capacity and ensuring constantly high returns on investment. This is as it should be considering the important role of human resources in development. It is only by giving proper attention to this mother of all resources particularly, to the selection, training, deployment, motivation, and supervision of personnel that nations can expect to transform their economies, record increasing welfare gains, and alleviate, if not, banish, poverty. In every country, the government needs capable and competent personnel to accomplish its various functions, such as formulating and implementing development policy; efficient management of services and institutions; etc Without investing in the development of human resources, these functions cannot be performed at the optimum level. Efficiency and effectiveness of service delivery to the clientele is largely dependent on the skills of the functionaries and the incentives applied to record incremental gains in productivity. Many governments have understood this reality and have embarked on programmes designed to enhance capacities in all the areas of national development, including the management of public services. They have put in place integrated administrative reform programmes designed to improve efficiency in the performance of the public service, and supportive of the general thrust of national development. The emphasis in such efforts is on the improvement of the governance capacity of the State and the replacement of administrative systems oriented more to control and processes with those that focus on results. It goes without saying that the implementation of such an important programme requires, first of all, the supply and deployment, in adequate quantities, of capacities and competencies in all the areas covered by the reforms. In Sierra Leone these capacities obviously need to be to be reinforced and upgraded. Fortunately, the pioneers of the current reform initiative acknowledge this fact. The development of human resources is a cornerstone and one of the main components - of the Sierra Leone administrative reform programme. It is recognized that human capacity building and reforms belong together, and must, therefore be simultaneously accorded high priority. Based on the preceding considerations, the training programme outlined in this proposal is expected to have two complementary dimensions. The first aspect will aim at preparing and sensitising officials to the content and demands of the reforms. Specifically, it will, besides exposing participants to the core elements of the reform programme, highlight the attitudinal changes that the successful implementation of the programme requires. After all, administrative reform does not mean shifting names from boxes to boxes or redrawing organisation charts. Real reform entails doing things differently to accomplish some fairly well-defined, mostly new, objectives. Consequently, a mindset that is oriented towards business as usual will have to be replaced with one that challenges current management orthodoxy, and suggests new ways of solving problems. Change planning and management will thus constitute an important training module. The emphasis will be on the why and how to conduct, and proceed with, the reforms. This aspect will concern particularly high level governmental officials who have to take strategic decisions and formulate development policies. The second dimension of the training will concentrate on public services management and operation, especially on procedure design and simplification, financial and tax management; human resource management and; information and communication technology applications to selected African Training and Research Centre in Administration for Development-CAFRAD 2

3 areas of public service management; productivity management, and performance appraisal. This broad vision of reform and training will provide opportunities for officials from various governmental bodies and different levels to interact and work together on the implementation and monitoring of the reform processes. The training will give a general and common direction for the implementation of the reforms. The training will therefore bring together the most senior civil servants for a new vision of government responsibilities and new methods to attain them. While the focus will be on situations prevailing in Sierra Leone, the benefit of inter-african comparative experience will be brought to bear on discussions at plenary and group sessions. Objectives of the training programme The training component of the public service reform programme will be expected to attain the following objectives: 1. strengthen the capacities for formulating, analysing and implementing public policies; 2. improve the public service s performance in the quality of the services provided to the community; 3. improve the quality and performance capability of public service institutions; 4. highlight the technical, attitudinal, and other changes that are required to ensure the attainment of the administrative reform objectives; 5. identify human capacity gaps that need to be filled at subsequent training programmes, or through a carefully designed programme of attachments/staff exchange. To achieve these objectives, complementary, but task-specific training programmes are to be developed, taking into account the needs and responsibilities of the beneficiaries. The development of these training programmes is grounded on the basic idea that training and learning have to be taken as continuous, life-long processes, and extended to all categories of public officials, whatever their level or designation. In addition, the training programme is predicated on the assumption that successful implementation of administrative reform and the complementary training programme require the full participation of all the stakeholders right from the policy makers, through the senior managers, to the front line managers and supervisors. This being so, the training programme will provide a forum at which all the stakeholders could exchange ideas and share experiences on the reform programme s underlying philosophy, operational processes, and methods. The proposed training programme will therefore be made up of two complementary sub-programmes, as explained below: Sub-Programme I: Retreat for Ministers and Permanent Secretaries Purpose of Retreat: Sharing of knowledge and experiences on development policy formulation and management, as well as facilitation of Inter-Ministerial Co-ordination. The basic stages in, and techniques of policy formulation will consequently be examined, and participants will focus on the need for policies to anticipate long-term consequences and implementation capacity. This component aims at sensitising and preparing for reforms to be implemented. It will enhance capacities for formulating development policies, and strategic planning and management skills. Retreat s Duration and Themes The Retreat is expected to last three days. The topics of discussion at the Retreat will include: African Training and Research Centre in Administration for Development-CAFRAD 3

4 New concepts and vision of the state and governance (including partnership with civil society, private sector, NGOs, decentralised authorities, etc The Role of the State in post-war rehabilitation, reconstruction and development. Sierra Leone and the Challenge of Globalisation. Implications of domestic and external challenges for policy formulation and management as well as resource mobilisation capacities. Creating an enabling environment for private sector partnership in the development process. Institutional and economic reforms for rapid economic growth, and improved standard of living; Reforming the State and its key organs (Approaches to, and Scope of Reform, Core elements of reform, change planning and management strategies); Fiscal and Financial Sector Reform (including a critical review of budgeting and taxation system; expenditure management; revenue mobilisation strategies; Aid management Coordination and Accountability; Public Accounting Practices; Sundry financial management and accounting issues; financial reporting and auditing systems; accountability); Decentralisation, Privatisation and Local Governance (Trends in economic, fiscal, administrative and political decentralisation; devolution; decentralisation, deregulation; disengagement and promotion of private sector development; management and financial problems facing local entities and local revenue mobilisation strategies); Setting Departmental (Ministerial) policy, objectives and programmes (formulation of policy and strategy for the Department; defining objectives and determining results; preparing programmes and projects; managing resources, etc ). Co-ordination of Governmental programmes (Elaboration of governmental policy, strategy and programmes; preparation and management of the budget; Networking within the Department and with other Ministerial Departments). Sub-Programme II: Strategic Planning and Management Seminar (for senior officials) The second sub-programme is expected to develop managerial, technical and operational capacities of civil servants and senior advisors in the various branches of the public sector services. It thus targeted mainly but not exclusively to Heads of Department, Directors and Deputy Directors and the staff of state enterprises in equivalent grades. Seminar Duration and Topics Each training session will need five to ten days. The main topics to be covered are as follows : Analysis of the present administrative reform programme : Why the reforms. Objectives to be attained. Programmes, projects and actions to be undertaken. Beneficiaries of the reforms. Monitoring and sustainability of the reforms. Change Planning and Management: Principles and techniques African Training and Research Centre in Administration for Development-CAFRAD 4

5 Productivity Measurement, Management and Improvement: Focus on Customer Satisfaction. Management of Human Resources : Management of Human Resources (Needs assessment; planning for recruitment; diversity sensitivity; job description and assignment; staff statutes and regulations; performance appraisal; salaries and working conditions; motivation and reward; training; retirement; bridging the skill-deployment/utilisation gap; etc ) Revenue Management : Tax collection system, institutions and management; Budgeting, Accounting and Reporting for Departments and Services; Procurement systems; Pay of the state personnel (elements of performance-related pay); Auditing and accountability mechanisms. Performance Improvement and Measurement : Improvement of the performance (of work, activities, actions, projects, programmes) of individuals and services; Monitoring and Measuring the Performance of individuals, groups and services. Application of New Information and Communication Technologies : Enhancing capacities in the use of computers; Creating websites and portals. Methodology The method will be participative, with participants sharing experiences and knowledge. Consultants will introduce topics, followed by discussions and presentation of concrete cases. Discussions will focus on the real situation of the public sector reform and management in Sierra Leone. Consultants will also present comparative cases and views on developments in the field. Various training sessions (or groups) will be organised, each containing between 20 to 30 participants. The case is most obvious for Directors, who cannot fit all in one training session. The number of sessions to be organised will depend on the number of participants. Consultants (Resource Persons) High level consultants with proven expertise in the issues to be addressed and knowledgeable in reform efforts of African countries will be recruited to lead discussions. African Training and Research Centre in Administration for Development-CAFRAD 5

6 Partners The training programme to be implemented will involve several partners within Sierra Leone and outside the country. Efforts are being made to attract appropriate partners to participate in the training programme. Particular input and participation from the following partners are expected : CAFRAD, National Institute of Public Administration (Sierra Leone), the Government of Sierra Leone, UNDP (Sierra Leone and New York), the World Bank, UNDESA, ECA, Government of Nigeria and Government of Namibia. (The latter two had developed very successful Retreats for Ministers and Permanent Secretaries. Other task-related training programmes Besides the two cross-cutting programmes referred to above, job-specific programmes will, as required, be designed and conducted in close collaboration with the appropriate Government ministries and departments. African Training and Research Centre in Administration for Development-CAFRAD 6