Republican President Edgar Lungu today launched the Performance-Based Contract System for Permanent Secretaries.
Speaking at the launch held at Government Complex, Mr Lungu said despite improved conditions of service for civil servants the public has continued to bemoan the poor performance by the public service.
“Our people have bemoaned the poor performance of the public service, despite the improvement in in the conditions of service, high academic credentials possessed by most public service workers and other reform initiatives progressively implemented by previous administrations.
“Even under the PF government we have not spared any efforts in our bid to motivate public service workers yet government and the public at large still remain less than satisfied with the level and quality of the services offered by our public service,” Mr Lungu said.
He explained that government has been prompted to come up with the Performance- Based Contract System so as to maximize the performances of public service workers.
He added that the program would cascade to other levels of the public service and that the launch was the beginning of the preferred option for improving the quality of services across the continent.
“The rollout of this program has started with Permanent Secretaries and District Commissioners, thereafter, it will be cascaded to other level the public service including Ministers with their Boards, Boards with their Chief Executive Officers and Local Authorities with their Chief Executives.”
Meanwhile Mr. Lungu said he was hopeful that the implementation of the system would accelerate the realisation of a smart government envisioned in the ” Smart Zambia Now” campaign which seeks to eliminate tedious and wasteful processes as well as procedures by embracing electronic access to public service by the public.
He said the combination of E-Government and Performance – Based Contracts will launch the country on a robust road towards the attainment of our vision to be prosperous middle income country by 2030 and a developed nation by 2064.
we want accountability in Government. No one is accountable for anything in PF. No one can explain any missing or abuse of GRZ funds as things stand. Just the other day ministry of education was saying $6 million for books and other educational curricula was lost and no one can explain why or how, more than $500 million was spent on rehabilitating kariba, but no one can account for that manee. how can we go on like this ?.
The lazy bum Edgar himself is partying and dancing everyday!!
Well I think the performance they are referring to, is HOW WELL SOMEONE KISSES THEIR BUTTS!!
This is a great move. In fact it were started earlier, the PS at the Ministry of Education would not be sitting with millions of Dollars meant for the construction of universities in Solwezi, Mongu and Chipata without acting. The PF government keep singing this song about putting up these universities, yet we haven’t seen a single thing done in almost 5 years now!
Long overdue and Thumps up to Government. The public service has just been a drain of resources with many people spending much time on personal related goals!
Most of these cadre PSs and DCs don’t even have grade 12 certificates…. ni vikopo malume!
@Patrick, first of all remove ‘want’ that is ego. The launch of the contract based performance is long overdue, you might also benefit from the fact that performance is accountability because, to perform is to be accountable to the dictates inherent in that function.
Zambia1
Are the PC and DCs responsible for the huge expense losses we see , like the $500 million unaccounted for kariba funds ? why should the electorate beg the government to do things a normal government should be doing ? GRZ works for the pipo of Zambia and should deliver what we want. Mike mulongoti among others have asked GRZ to account for the Kariba manee, it is our manee, not manee for PF.
Dancing Lungu and the rest of his PF gangs should be advised to start quick construction of new prisons or they will be spending a lot of time in the overcrowded prisons we have.
A good move but is it going to be enforced or corruption will worm its way in! Accountability and discipline is vital in the civil service. Civil servants are arrogant towards the public and they forget we pay their salaries. They are our servants and should serve the public and not lord over them!
Really laughable. ..using what criteria when they are cadres and the ministers are not accountable!!
Very good decision. But GVT must also plan and stop acting randomly like now. Plan and have measurable metrics/tasks.
The executive (of which the civil service is part) is accountable to no one. Even this, however beautiful it sounds, is just a fly by the wall initiative. That’s how we advocated for a complete separation of powers starting with cabinet outside parley. The president as head of executive cannot be his own monitor.
And how much of this performance based effort will be thwarted by the ill performing politician and ad hoc policy making that goes on in Zed. The civil service are meant to be efficiently run no matter whether the political parties change but the professionalism is hampered by the selection of heads that think politics over service.
Combination of scapegoating, paper shuffling and late to the game alterations.
The only sure way of enforcing accoutability is to make accessible accounts of every ngwee of every project to the public for scrutiny if they so whish. Even make such records part of the curriculum in our institutions of learning. Donners will be happy to fund this exercise with no cost to GRZ. but those theives and time waisters we have can never allow scrutiny of the way they steal our resources.