An analysis of ethics and governance practices in the public sector: United Nations and African Union perspectives

Recent studies highlight the importance of improving governance and ethics in public entities, especially in Africa. However, doing so requires an understanding on what forms governance and ethics in public institutions, particularly at a national level. Such considerations necessitates that some focus on continental and world institutions, such as, the African Union and the United Nations. These institutions have been in existence for a number of years with mandates of improving member states governance and ethics, as well as, service delivery to the public. As such, this research primarily focuses on understanding the roles played by the AU and the UN in shaping governance and ethics to member states, as well as, of its employees. The focus of this inquiry was to understand individual narratives about how working for public institutions on a daily to day basis influences governance and ethics understanding and application. Therefore, in order to properly analyse the narratives from respondents, the study applied an inductive and qualitative approach in order to explore how the AU and UN systems influence governance and ethics for member s states and employees. Data was collected through semi structured interviews with UN and AU officials, as well as public servants of member states for those organisations. The study made use of a thematic analyses method of interpreting data. A total of six major themes emerged, they are as follows: ethics a part in governance; effectiveness of AU and UN systems; disciplinary role; ethical guidelines and standards influence on public sector; member states adherence to the UN/AU ethical conduct; and implementation gaps in ethical guidelines within member states. Interviews were conducted in four countries namely; South Africa, Tanzania, Mauritius and Botswana. Findings from the study pointed that the AU and UN systems have loopholes in dealing with issues of governance and ethics. Moreover, member states respondents also pointed to the loopholes in those two organisations. The research suggests that member states should tighten their public entities ethical compliance assessments and follow suggestions from the UN and AU. Final recommendations and suggestions for further research are provided.Thesis (PhD) -- Faculty of Management and Commerce, 201

An Application of the Corporate Virtue Scale to Assess Managers’ Perceptions of Ethical Behaviour in Public Organizations and Service Provision

A strong ethical culture is the key to any organization’s long-term success. The purpose of this research was to investigate the link between an organization’s ethical culture and its effect on workers’ well-being, as well as to test the construct validity of the Corporate Virtue Scale (CEV). In South Africa’s Buffalo Municipality, 277 managers from different government agencies made up the sample. The eight-factor CEV scale was validated through a confirmatory factor analysis. Employees’ stress and emotional exhaustion were linked to their views on the prevalence of an ethical culture in public agencies. The results of this study show that an organization’s ethical culture significantly affects its employees’ quality of life on the job. The CEV scale was found to have construct validity, proving its reliability and validity in practice. The government is urged to prioritize the streamlining of regulations and processes that foster an ethical culture in public institutions

An analysis of ethics and governance practices in the public sector: United Nations and African Union perspectives

Recent studies highlight the importance of improving governance and ethics in public entities, especially in Africa. However, doing so requires an understanding on what forms governance and ethics in public institutions, particularly at a national level. Such considerations necessitates that some focus on continental and world institutions, such as, the African Union and the United Nations. These institutions have been in existence for a number of years with mandates of improving member states governance and ethics, as well as, service delivery to the public. As such, this research primarily focuses on understanding the roles played by the AU and the UN in shaping governance and ethics to member states, as well as, of its employees. The focus of this inquiry was to understand individual narratives about how working for public institutions on a daily to day basis influences governance and ethics understanding and application. Therefore, in order to properly analyse the narratives from respondents, the study applied an inductive and qualitative approach in order to explore how the AU and UN systems influence governance and ethics for member s states and employees. Data was collected through semi structured interviews with UN and AU officials, as well as public servants of member states for those organisations. The study made use of a thematic analyses method of interpreting data. A total of six major themes emerged, they are as follows: ethics a part in governance; effectiveness of AU and UN systems; disciplinary role; ethical guidelines and standards influence on public sector; member states adherence to the UN/AU ethical conduct; and implementation gaps in ethical guidelines within member states. Interviews were conducted in four countries namely; South Africa, Tanzania, Mauritius and Botswana. Findings from the study pointed that the AU and UN systems have loopholes in dealing with issues of governance and ethics. Moreover, member states respondents also pointed to the loopholes in those two organisations. The research suggests that member states should tighten their public entities ethical compliance assessments and follow suggestions from the UN and AU. Final recommendations and suggestions for further research are provided.Thesis (PhD) -- Faculty of Management and Commerce, 201

An Application of the Corporate Virtue Scale to Assess Managers’ Perceptions of Ethical Behaviour in Public Organizations and Service Provision

A strong ethical culture is the key to any organization’s long-term success. The purpose of this research was to investigate the link between an organization’s ethical culture and its effect on workers’ well-being, as well as to test the construct validity of the Corporate Virtue Scale (CEV). In South Africa’s Buffalo Municipality, 277 managers from different government agencies made up the sample. The eight-factor CEV scale was validated through a confirmatory factor analysis. Employees’ stress and emotional exhaustion were linked to their views on the prevalence of an ethical culture in public agencies. The results of this study show that an organization’s ethical culture significantly affects its employees’ quality of life on the job. The CEV scale was found to have construct validity, proving its reliability and validity in practice. The government is urged to prioritize the streamlining of regulations and processes that foster an ethical culture in public institutions