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Address by Honourable Premier TSP Makwetla at the Launch of the Accelerated Capacity Building Flagship Project, Mapulaneng Multi-Purpose Community Centre, Bushbuckridge

15 February 2008

 

Programme Director,

Chairperson of the Governance Cluster, MEC Mashego-Dlamini,

Members of the Executive Council,

Executive Mayor of Bushbuckridge, Cllr. Morema

Councillors,

Our Government’s Social Partners,

Senior Managers and officials in the Public Service,

Ladies and Gentlemen

 

I would like to thank you for being part of this important occasion marking the official launch of the Accelerated Capacity Building flagship. Many of you will recall that this project is part of our ‘Big Five’ flagship projects announced last year as prioritised interventions to accelerate economic development and service delivery in the Province.

 

In our view, the results of the management Skills Audit conducted in 2005 necessitated a systematic and targeted response to address management and leadership performance challenges.  The Skills Audit revealed that the majority of our senior and middle managers did not possess requisite leadership and management competencies and skills required to perform their duties at required level.

 

Given the developmental and service delivery challenges facing the Province, there is a clear realization that for us to achieve the developmental goals that we have set ourselves, there should be targeted focus on skills development to improve public sector delivery capabilities. We need to enhance leadership and management competencies among the senior and middle management cadre. Alongside this, is a need to continuously focus on building organisational capacity and performance as well as developing the capacity of managers and officials to perform more effectively. At the same, it we should continue to strengthen recruitment and selection processes in order to attract and retain appropriately qualified and competent individuals in key positions.

 

In essence, the flagship project that we are launching today espouses the fundamental goal of building a cadre of performance-oriented and result driven managers and leaders. That is about developing a leadership cadre that is able manage organizational change complexities, and deliver results that change the lives of Mpumalanga citizens for the better.

 

Programme Director, success in transforming our administration into a best performing machinery lies in our ability to change the organizational culture that perpetuates mediocrity, poor performance and non-accountability for performance and results. We need to infuse a new organizational culture that values performance, the ethos of honesty and professionalism, positive work ethic and dedication to service.

 

Equally, we need to inculcate a culture of service among our managers so that the citizens’ interaction with government is a pleasing experience. We should strive to eliminate red tape, streamline processes, and improve turnaround times in the delivery of services to our citizens. The Accelerated Capacity Building flagship will prioritise interventions aimed at tackling organisation and capacity challenges facing provincial and local government institutions.

 

Programme Director, as a developing economy, the role of the state in leading and intervening in the economy to achieve the objectives of shared growth and wealth requires strong leadership and management capacities to guide policy development and implementation. There are lessons to be drawn from countries that have managed to achieve phenomenal economic growth and improved social development outcomes. The case of states defined as developmental states provide an illustration of how public sector performance is central to shaping economic growth and performance.

 

Critically, the success of developmental states has depended on their ability to build a dedicated and competent public service cadre. In the experiences of developmental states, the state’s transformative capacity depended on the existence of committed and competent managers and leaders tasked with the responsibilities of formulating economic policies that lead to economic growth and national development. As we implement the Accelerated Capacity Building flagship, we should reflect on the transformative capacity of the management and leadership cadre that we have, and design programmes to address capacity gaps where they exist.

 

In many instances, as a Province, we are constrained by weak leadership and technical capacities in critical areas of policy implementation where the state’s role is critical to achieve our developmental goals. One of the challenging areas of performance in Mpumalanga is limited institutional capacity to accelerate the implementation of economic and social infrastructure projects. High levels of under-expenditure in critical infrastructure projects is a consequence of poor leadership and a shortage of scarce and critical skills required for the effective roll-out of infrastructure programmes. In the context of the Province, this suggests that we are unable to intervene effectively to address underdevelopment in a way that impacts on economic growth and job creation through the public infrastructure investments in rural areas. We need to develop programme management and leadership capacities to push through major infrastructure development projects in a way that contributes to growth.

 

It is important that we improve capacity for policy implementation, efficiencies, and overall performance of our managers to deliver on the implementation of the provincial priorities. The Executive Development Programme will contribute significantly to the improvement of management skills in critical areas such:

  • Strategic leadership and service delivery

  • Change management

  • Financial management

  • Knowledge management

  • Client orientation and customer focus

  • Policy development and implementation.

Our Junior and Middle Management Development Programmes seek to provide junior and middle managers with cutting-edge management competencies, and also to prepare them for the challenges at higher management levels. Our middle managers are empowered with skills in:

  • Applied strategic thinking;

  • Planning, organizing and project management;

  • Problem solving and decision making;

  • Team leadership;

  • Budget and financial management;

  • Developing others;

Programme Director, given our commitment to accelerated management development in the Province, we are pleased that we have been able to identify permanent infrastructure for use as the Mpumalanga Management Centre (MMC). Mapulaneng Multi-purpose Community Centre facility will be used as our management centre that will coordinate management training and development interventions.  This centre will serve as an in-service facility, where a range of programmes and courses will be offered to both the provincial and local government managers.

 

Programme Director, we believe that our commitment to develop our managers will contribute to improving the quality of service delivery and development in the Province. 

 

Thank you

 

Issued by: Office of the Premier, Mpumalanga Provincial Government