Implementing A Public Sector Performance Management System

The President of Mauritius, Sir Anerood Jugnauth

A flexible Performance Management System (PMS) that upholds the principles of law, equity and public interest improves public sector administration and promotes good governance.

This was one of the outcomes of a four-day seminar on 'Implementing a Public Sector PMS' held in Mauritius last week (15 to 18 March 2004). Participants from 20 countries in Africa agreed that each country operates differently and, therefore, a customised approach is needed in the successful implementation of PMS.

The President of Mauritius, Sir Anerood Jugnauth, who launched the seminar, said, "The  public service should seek to embrace fully new performance management ideas, while putting greater emphasis than it has done hitherto on continuous improvement and attainment of high quality standards in service delivery. By the same token, in order to enhance its future competitive advantage, it must show that it is not only able to do things differently, but better by, inter alia, improving individual performance."

Taboka Nkhwa, Deputy Director of the Commonwealth Secretariat's Governance and Institutional Development Division, said, "One of the critical factors identified during the seminar is that governments must consider the organisational and societal cultures when implementing PMS and this involves political, psychological and cultural considerations in their own country. What is acceptable in one country may not necessarily be acceptable in another. What is most important is that we must not reinvent the wheel, we must learn from best practice and adopt them to our own environment. PMS also requires flexibility, an open mind framework and the development of trust within organisations."

The seminar highlighted the global pressure on governments around the world to embark on the reform of the public sector to promote effective governance, sustainable development and economic growth.

Other outcomes of the meeting included the recognition of the importance of capacity-building on service delivery; the need for an effective, more flexible and adaptable public administrative system that will deliver high-quality goods and services; and a training strategy to upgrade the knowledge, skills and aptitudes of new recruits and serving officers, including top managers and technical staff.

"The PMS provides a better balance between policy, which focuses on strategic key issues, and implementation, which translates programmes into tangible results," said Ms Nkhwa. "It is also important that individual and team performance within an organisation be continuously and systematically assessed in order to find suitable avenues to tap potential, nurture talent and enhance job skills for workers so they can excel."