The Portfolio Committee on Public Administration, Planning, monitoring an evaluation welcomes the results of the 2013 Management Performance Assessment Tool (MPAT) as presented to the Committee by The Presidency. The Committee believes that this tool is important in ensuring a capable administration necessary for the delivery of the National Development Plan.
The Committee welcomes the 2013 results, especially because the compliance rate has improved from government departments. Compliance by government departments is necessary for improvement of service delivery and the sharing of good practice and it will enable oversight bodies like Parliament to do its work vigorously.
But the Committee is concerned that the results have highlighted various challenges which need urgent attention. The Committee is concerned that 70% of national and provincial departments are at level 1 and 2 assessment standards on governance and accountability. This translates into partial or non-compliance with legal/regulatory requirements. Although this has decreased from 79% in 2012 the results remain a concern.
Furthermore, the Committee is concerned that 87% of departments are still not paying suppliers within the set 30-day period. “This is worrying especially when you consider that the small and medium sized enterprises are the driving force behind our economy and a major contributor to job creation initiatives. This has been one of the main issues continuously raised by President Zuma and departments must up their game and pay service providers within the stipulated 30 days,” said Mrs Peace Mabe, the Chairperson of the Committee.
The Committee will in the next term engage those departments that have underperformed in terms of MPAT standards to ensure the reversal of the trajectory. This is to ensure improvement in the delivery in the public service.
Meanwhile the Committee welcomes the implementation of the Public Service Integrity Management Framework (PSIMF) as a further tool to ensure ethics and integrity management within the public service.
The Committee appreciates that even though the registration on the eDisclosure system by Senior Management Services members was not mandatory, 77% of all SMS members have registered. This is a clear sign that public servants are committed to complying with requirements of PSIMF. The full implementation of PSIMF will ensure that everyone within the public service complies with ethics frameworks in place and protect the public service against unethical conduct and corruption.
For media enquiries or interviews with the Chairperson, please contact:
Malatswa Evans Molepo
Cell: 073 297 1914
Tel: 021 403 8438
E-mail: mmolepo@parliament.gov.za
