Measuring the goodness of governance : macro, intermediate and micro perspectives

Governance comprises a network of interdependent connections between various actors. The performance of governance institutions should be measured, both quantitatively (efficiency, effectiveness and economy dimensions) and qualitatively (outcomes and impact on society). Such measuring endeavours should occur against the background of globally-accepted principles of good and outcomes-based governance. It should further be facilitated by the design and establishment of comprehensive monitoring and evaluation systems. The question may be asked as to what extent the South African Government complies with international best practices to measure the goodness of its policy, strategy, programme and project interventions. The focus of this article is thus to critique the system utilised by the South African Government to measure the goodness of government (institutional perspectives) as well as the goodness of governance (network, joined-up, societal perspectives). A macro, intermediate and micro framework is utilised for this purpose

Public Administration and Management as study domain : the relevance debate

The applicative nature of Public Administration and Management (henceforth referred to as PAM) as a social science discipline is evident. Therefore it is generally maintained that this discipline’s relevance revolves around the practical solutions that it holds for challenges in governance. During PAM curriculation exercises at tertiary institutions, various questions are often posed. These include questions such as: To what extent does the discipline address the real world of governance? Does it adequately equip the prospective public manager for the demands associated with the executive arm of government? How can the theory-practice gap in tuition be bridged? Ultimately, the question remains: Is PAM’s relevance only centred on its vocational nature, or should its relevance also be sought on a more fundamental, scientific level? If the only concern of PAM as applied science is providing applications to serve government, are the following aspects not sacrificed: scientific knowledge creation, independent and critical engagement, and theory development? The purpose of this article is to explore the following avenues: the potential relevance of the discipline for society, the government as study domain and main employer, the university as educational service provider, and the student who desires value for money as well as prospects for future employment

Towards an E-Governance competency framework for public service managers : the South African experiment

The emergence of the so-called networked or knowledge society profoundly transforms governance approaches on a global scale by introducing new forms of collaboration and exchange between society and government. Government institutions and agencies had to respond by optimally utilising ICT technology to facilitate e-governance applications for improved interactions with society. In light of this context a skilled and competent workforce for the application of appropriate e-governance technologies is essential. As the administrative leaders of executive institutions (i.e. government departments), civil service managers have to champion and oversee all e-governance applications and practices. Various general training models for capacity-building of civil service managers exist, but a comprehensive competency framework for their e-readiness as far as e-governance applications are concerned, is largely absent. Such a competency framework should be congruent with the unique governance circumstances, applications, operations, e-governance praxis, regulatory framework, and the ICT infrastructure-growth trajectory of a particular country. The purpose of this article is threefold. Firstly, it will outline contextual perspectives regarding the utilisation of ICT in promoting e-governance in general, including an analysis of the seemingly insufficient alignment between government operational demands and the e-readiness (i.e. competencies) of civil service managers. Secondly, the article will explore the South African Government’s initiatives in promoting e-governance competencies of its civil service; and thirdly, it will propose a comprehensive competency framework for civil service managers based on a comparative analysis of various models and best practice around the globe

Corporate Social Responsibility 2.0: Towards a socio-transformative paradigm for business

The South African business fraternity is expected to contribute to and foster the government’s social transformation agenda. This contribution should be directed by businesses’ corporate social responsibility (CSR) intentions and organizational arrangements. However, companies’ efforts in this regard are being increasingly criticized due to the absence of a socio-transformative agenda. In other words, CSR praxis is perceived to be inadequately positioned in businesses to act as a core strategic function aimed at benefiting society. The purpose of this article is to outline the perceived failures of conventional CSR praxis and to propose a framework for businesses to adopt a socio-transformative CSR paradigm. A generic qualitative research design, utilizing document analysis and a literature survey, was followed in this study. The findings indicate that businesses do indeed need to adopt a socio-transformative business model to comply with national and international driving forces for change. Recommendations are proposed to guide businesses towards such a transformative management approach utilizing the principles of McKinsey 7-S model for business readiness and Kotter’s 8-step change management model. The study encourages corporations and firms to adopt a socio-transformative paradigm by utilizing established business readiness and change management models

Towards a typology of government interventionism in municipalities

Although significant progress has been made since democratisation in 1994, much still needs to be done before all local, district and metropolitan municipalities in South Africa are fully functional, sustainable, and developmental. In response to general municipal dysfunctionalism with inadequate service delivery levels and rising levels of public protest, the South African Government has a statutory and moral obligation to intervene in the affairs of municipalities. The nature, scope, and intensions of such interventions are, however, not always clear. It is evident though that Government increasingly views interventionism as a viable approach. Embracing such an interventionist paradigm in government requires scholars to more closely scrutinise municipal interventions, not as loose-standing and isolated occurrences, but as part of an emergent strategy in South African governance. The purpose of this article is to make a contextual and conceptual contribution to the analysis of interventionism by developing a theoretical construct in the form of a typology. This typology could stimulate further scholarly perspectives into the phenomenon of government interventionism in South African municipalities

Participative integrated development planning praxis in local government : the case of selected South African municipalities

BACKGROUND : Municipalities have a moral and legal obligation to involve communities in determining, prioritising and realising socio-economic development needs. To achieve this aim, municipalities should use integrated development planning, which implies a sequential, phased process. Municipalities should engage the local communities in each phase. For this purpose, and based on unique demographic realities, various means of participation should be used. AIM : The aim was to present and reflect on the results of a survey conducted in selected South African municipalities to ascertain the status of integrated development planning design and implementation in the sampled municipalities, with a particular reference to community participation praxis. SETTING : Senior managers in 11 randomly sampled local, district and metropolitan municipalities. Participants included municipal managers as chief accounting officers, chief financial officers, executive directors and functional heads of department. METHODS : A qualitative survey research design was followed utilising a desktop survey and semi-structured interviews as data collection methods. Input was obtained from senior managers (n = 52) in 11 randomly sampled local, district and metropolitan municipalities. RESULTS : The survey revealed significant disparities between high capacity urban municipalities and deep rural low-capacity municipalities regarding the effectiveness of community participation mechanisms and development planning engagement. CONCLUSION : Integrated development planning is crucial to address the diverse and complex nature of development challenges experienced by most of the South African population. The IDPs of municipalities are critical instruments to guide municipalities in determining and addressing targeted needs in urban and rural communities. Recommendations are proposed to address the planning participation deficit.https://jolgri.org/index.php/jolgriam2022School of Public Management and Administration (SPMA

Evidence-based social cohesion interventions in local government

Promoting social cohesion is particularly critical in South Africa given the context of widening inequality, growing unemployment, and persistent racial inequalities. Without measurement, potential key contributing factors that may influence social cohesion (inequality, poverty, violence, gender conflicts, mistrust, etc.) will remain elusive, thereby complicating the formulation of effective policies and programmes in the local sphere of government towards improved social cohesion and inclusive development (Palmary, 2015; Rocha, Kunc, & Audretsch, 2020). Following a mixed method design, inclusive of a literature review, desktop survey, case study analyses and semi-structured interviews with three cohorts (n = 32), the purpose of this article was to outline the framework dimensions of an evidence-based measurement instrument (i.e., Municipal Social Cohesion Barometer) to gauge the extent to which municipalities succeed in promoting social cohesion. The findings revealed dimensions and indicators for such an instrument and concluded that without a measurement instrument, potential key determinants that influence social cohesion in local communities remain largely hidden, making it difficult to design initiatives aimed at enhancing social cohesion through a more inclusive approach to local development. The relevance of the findings is centred on the utilisation of an instrument for measuring social cohesion that enables policymakers to target key domains that currently limit national unity.The South African Local Government Association (SALGA).https://virtusinterpress.org/-Journal-of-Governance-and-Regulation-15-.htmlhj2023School of Public Management and Administration (SPMA

Political oversight of municipal projects: an empirical investigation

One of the key tenets of a democracy is legislative oversight over executive authorities. The aims of such oversight are to foster accountable, efficient, responsible, ethical, and transparent governance. However, recent official and media reports in South Africa record a rising trend in the number of unethical, and mismanagement cases in especially the local sphere of government. The media regularly report on often violent service delivery protests across the country. Municipalities are responsible for the design and execution of service delivery projects that have a direct bearing on citizen’s lives. Robust oversight of these projects is critical to effect more legitimate local governance. The purpose of this article is to empirically investigate the functioning and utilisation of political oversight structures and mechanisms by reflecting on the opinions and perceptions of senior officials and political representatives (i.e. councillors) in eight local and four district municipalities in Gauteng, North West, Free State, Eastern Cape and Northern Cape provinces