Charting the course of leadership for development in the Commonwealth

Heads of national training institutes in the Commonwealth reaffirmed the primacy of leadership development in strengthening governance structures and public administration in their countries. They acknowledged that weak institutions and resource constraints severely limit a government’s capacity to reduce poverty and achieve the Millennium Development Goals.

Forty public sector leaders attending a Commonwealth workshop in Nairobi, Kenya, from 22 to 23 May 2011 on the theme, Strengthening Institutional Capacity for Leadership Development, agreed that creative strategies and cost-effective initiatives are critical in promoting leadership for development. Training institutes from 15 Commonwealth countries discussed ways to collaborate with each other and with the international development community.

The event was organised by the Commonwealth Secretariat in partnership with the Commonwealth Association for Public Administration and Management (CAPAM) and the Kenya Institute of Administration (KIA), with support from the Commonwealth Fund for Technical Co-operation (CFTC).

KIA chief executive Professor Margaret Kobia said: “Good leadership is needed at all levels of government, from ministers and permanent secretaries to front-line supervisors and project team leaders. Excellence in leadership at all levels motivates high performance, coalesces development efforts, and galvanises support to public sector reform.”

CAPAM Executive Director David Waung stated that the challenge of developing and sustaining effective leadership capabilities is formidable, and estimated that more than 100,000 public servants across the Commonwealth need some form of leadership development.

“Learning programmes have to be customised to the context of each country and its circumstances because effective leadership is inseparable from cultural norms. While leadership programmes for senior executives are resource intensive, they offer high return on investment,” said Mr Waung.

The participants proposed two resolutions on Leadership for Development to be presented to leaders at the forthcoming Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Perth, Australia, in October. One of them is to reaffirm support for the role of leadership development in strengthening the capacity of member countries to deliver policy mandates, public sector reform, and public services. The other is to prioritise collaborative strategies that will build the capacity of public service training institutes, develop the competencies required to lead in the public sector, and facilitate governance, management, and funding of initiatives.

John Wilkins, Head of Thematic Programmes Group at the Governance and Institutional Development Division of the Secretariat and one of the facilitators of the workshop, noted that more capacity-building is needed to develop effective leaders. He said the Secretariat has organised a range of pan-Commonwealth, regional, and in-country capacity-building programmes for the public service in response to calls by Commonwealth leaders and ministers to help strengthen leadership capabilities.

“The proposed Commonwealth Leadership for Development Initiative responds to members’ and stakeholders’ priorities for action. An annual forum is envisaged to build a community of practice and to facilitate networking and exchanges. Leadership programmes to develop the competencies of senior executives, as well as workshops, toolkits, and research to expose trainers to advanced learning methodologies, programme design, and impact assessment, are also in the works. A guiding coalition, including the Secretariat, has formed to steer business planning and community arrangements,” said Mr Wilkins.

The workshop was followed on 24-26 May by a CAPAM regional conference on Leading for Results: Realizing the Vision. A message from the Vice-President of Kenya at the close of the conference endorsed the need to train leaders to inspire excellence in public service and to fulfil national development goals. Plans for Commonwealth leadership development were commended as a 'finishing school' for senior public executives.