Continuation of Deliberations on PALAMA’s Annual Report 2008/09

Response to Questions raised by the PortCom on 28th October 2008

Acting Director-General and Branch HeadsWednesday, 4th November 2009

Cape Town

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Presentation StructureA. Background - Questions posed by the Committee from the last meeting (to be circulated)

B. Process leading to MINCOM

Cabinet Lekgotla decision of July 2005

MINCOM Findings Summary

Cabinet Decision of November 2006

C. Process of Implementing of Cabinet Decision

1. Task Teams

2. Consultations and Organogram

3. Matching and Placing of SAMDI staff and external recruitment

4. Main Deviations from MINCOM and Cabinet decisions

D. Current business model

E. Financial and Budget Roll-over

F. Palama’s Procurement activities specific to training (separate presentation)

G. Donor Supported Programmes

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B. Process leading to MINCOM

Cabinet Lekgotla decision of July 2005

In July 2005 Cabinet Lekgotla requested Minister for Public Service and Administration to report to Cabinet on capability of SAMDI to respond to the capacity development challenges in the public service

The Minister for Public Service and Administration appointed a Ministerial Committee (MINCOM) to consider SAMDI’s adequacy to respond to the challenge

MINCOM comprised members from government, private sector, higher education, labour organisation and international expert

MINCOM drew up a report with findings and a number of recommendations

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MINCOM Findings Summary

SAMDI not effectively fulfilling its mandate to provide quality, customised training and delopment to the public service

Performance of higher education institutions (HEIs) and other training providers, and their collaborations with SAMDI, has fallen way short of expectation (under-performing)

SAMDI and stakeholders are operating without a coherent and coordinated national institutional framework to guide and integrate their work

Sub-optimal efficacy of the training institutions within the public service and inadequate linkages and partnerships between government and the training providers resulting in doubtful relevance of training provided

System encouraged competition rather than collaboration between providers leading to duplication and inefficient use of resources

The mere strengthening of SAMDI in its current role will not address problems identified

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MINCOM Findings Summary Cont.

Need for the establishment of a national public service academy Such academy shall have the powers and responsibility to set and

enforce mandatory training programmes, common standards and quality assurance mechanisms throughout the public service including local government

Whilst representing a radical departure from the current role and functioning of SAMDI, the academy will build on SAMDI’s strengths whilst avoiding weaknesses

The establishment of the academy will contribute significant to the development of a high performing public service

MINCOM acknowledged that the implementation of the academy was going to be a complex and challenging process and therefore recommended the establishment of a Task Team to oversee the process

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Cabinet Decision of November 2006

Cabinet approved MINCOM recommendations including some amendments’ e.g. Establishment of an Academy as a Schedule 1 department reporting to

MPSA as opposed to an entity with a board And, among others approved:

Establishment of an implementation task team to implement decisions over 18 months

Academy to be established parallel to SAMDI Fully funded initially with element of cost-recovery Focused on practical management and leadership skills for a

developmental state Training for development of common ethos and values for a

professional public service

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C. Process of Implementing of Cabinet Decision Nine task teams established to look at various focus areas of the

new Academy (e.g. learning framework, training system, etc) The business model was informed by the following strategic shifts

From a provider of training to a facilitator (Resulting in no in-house trainers)

From being a competitor to collaborating with other service providers To extend its coverage from selective to comprehensive high-volume

(massification) New organogram was designed to fulfill this strategy Consulted with MPSA, SAMDI management, staff and unions Matching and placing of SAMDI staff conducted through

competency exercises, and interviews A total of 19 staff members declared in excess External Adverts in print media for additional recruitments

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Main Deviations from MINCOM and Cabinet decision

MINCOM

Academy not to be a Department, but a public institution reporting to MPSA through a Board appointed by Cabinet

Internal quality assurance, with peer input, later get ETQA status Fully funded initially, with a later element of cost-recovery

Cabinet Decision

Task team not established leaving the implementation to be led and driven by DG

Outsourced capacity for training (Reliance on external training providers)

Initially the Academy was to be established parallel to SAMDI

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D. Palama’s current business model – Outsourcing & Impact After its transition from SAMDI to Palama there was a

shift in business strategy:

From doing training itself to providing and managing training From being a competitor to being a collaborator with the full range of

training providers From selective to comprehensive coverage or ‘massified’ delivery

Palama accordingly adopted a strategy of not having internal trainers on its payroll and instead outsourced the capacity from

Externally based individual trainers (IICs) Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) and Private Training Companies

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Specific Question: Women trained in Executive Development Programme in majority of trainees; Unpack statistics in real figures

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Specific Questions: Is Palama making an impact and how is it measuring its impact through training?

Palama has not yet instituted impact studies on organizational- and societal level - recent impact evaluation guidelines released by the Presidency will be considered.

However, Palama training impact is measured at certain stages during and after the training.  These stages are as follows: Participant level – Reaction evaluation questionnaires and

interviews are conducted with participants, including onsite evaluations

Programme quality – this is measured through onsite evaluations as well as the feedback from the facilitators and the participants   

Transfer of skills – this is measured through the portfolio assessment where learners have to complete a work related assignment which will demonstrate their  competence and also whether the training had any impact on their performance

Not all Palama programmes require learners to submit a portfolio of evidence after a training intervention

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Specific Questions: Palama must give case studies  giving a status quo before and after its interventions where it has intervened  with its training programmes

We are not yet conducting case studies given the duration of Palama’s existence

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E. Financial and Budget Roll-overFinancial performance - Utilisation of donor funds

Name of Donor Purpose Opening

Balance

Revenue Expenditure Closing

Balance

R’000 R’000 R’000 R’000

1. Received in Cash

1.1 Local Aid Assistance

African Renaissance Fund Training - 23,697 (8,873) 14,824

1.2 Foreign Aid Assistance

Aid assistance unitilised 28 10,742 (8,718) 2,052

CIDA – Gender Mainstreaming Training (192) 4,400 (3,766) 442

CIDA – Public Sector Training Training - 4,858 (3,586) 1,272

Government of Sweden Training 192 - - 192

Government of Germany Training - 1,484 (1,366) 118

Common Wealth Training 28 - - 28

Aid assistance receivable (250) - (68) (318)

Government of the Netherlands Training (1) - (68) (69)

Government of Flanders Training (249) - - (249)

Total foreign aid assistance in cash (222) 10,742 (8,786) 1,734

Total aid assistance received in cash (222) 34,439 (17,659) 16,558

2. Received in Kind

Total aid assistance received in kind 2,048 2,182 (4,230) -

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Income and Cost breakdown per Person Training Day (PTD)

R’000

2008/09 R

Per

PTDa

Income 131,921 982

Revenue from training 89,321

Transfer from VOTE (Parliamentary Grant) 42,600

Cost of Sales 83,261 620

Venues for training 16,229

Outsourced trainers (Consultants) 50,335

Other (Travel, Stationery, etc) 16,697

Contribution 48,660 362

Operating cost 53,865 401

Staff costs 32,917

Administrative costs 12,986

Other operating cost (Staff development, Audit cost, travel, etc) 7,962

Finance Income 7,023

Surplus for the year 1,818 14

a Calculation based on 134 375 PTD’s

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G. Donor Supported Programmes Framework for international and donor relations

The Palama strategy for International and Donor relations is aligned to Government’s international cooperation policy and the Official Donor Assistance policy of the the National Treasury.

SA’s international relations policy prioritises the AU/Nepad agenda for Africa’s reconstruction and, in particular, it focuses on the post conflict countries.

The Joint Coordinating Commissions or Binational Commissions with other countries are initiated by DICO and Palama, like other national departments, forges joint programmes of cooperation and mutual interest with counterparts in countries identified by DICO, or more directly, the MPSA.

Departments usually attend quarterly meetings at DICO where written quarterly progress reports are tabled.

The Annual Consultations with various donors, faciliated by NT, provides an opportunity for South Africa to have ownership over ODA and to determine and monitor alignment of donor funded programmes with the our country policies and strategies and government POA. Further, NT also has a responsibility, along with individual departments to promote the harmonization among donors.

The Paris Declaration (2005) obliges ODA partners (donors and beneficiaries) to adhere to the 5 tenets of ownership; alignment; harmonization; accountability and managing for results.

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Framework for donor programmes

Annual consultations promote better identification of funding programmes and sources to match departmental priorities; to ensure that financial modalities employed are aligned to SA’s financial polices (PFMA) and to enable efficient allocation of funding to avoid duplication.

Country agreements - such as the General Agreement on Development Cooperation between the Government of Canada and the Government of the Republic of South Africa signed 23/11/2006 at National Treasury, guides relations between Palama and Canadian institutions.

Once a funding contract is in place, the Reconstruction and Development Programme (RDP) Fund (at National Treasury) acts as a channel for funding from donors to departments. This enables NT to monitor funded projects.

From the RDP, the funds are paid into the Palama Master General (PMG) Account on request from Palama for implemetation of funded projects.

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Palama’s ODA strategy

Palama ODA policy is aligned to Palama’s strategic objectives and the governments MTSF.

Palama utilises donor funds as seed capital to pilot or trial innovative and new interventions in areas of training and development. These are areas usually outside Palama’s normal programmes and activities.

Following such pilots, successful programmes may be taken up on a wider scale as part of Palama programmes.

These funded inventions may pertain to international special programmes, i.e programmes of cooperation with other countries, such as the Regional Capacity Building Project with Management Development Institutions in 3 Post Conflict countries (Burundi, Rwanda and Southern Sudan). Palama also benefits from these programmes. In the RCB project just under a third of the budget is allocated to Palama.

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Palama’s ODA strategy

Funded interventions also pertain to special local projects such as the Gender Mainstreaming Programme which is innovative and targets beneficiaries within SA (hence local) .

Develop strategic international partnerships which continue beyond donor projects e.g. showcasing indigenous models and best practices, learning networks, benchmarking best practice and exchange programmes

Branch is a nodal point for ODA to enable more effective management of not only of donor programmes but of donor relations.

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Agreements for ODA ODA agreements between Palama and donors usually flow from initial

Government to Government MOUs, depending on the nature of agreements and how it relates to the strategic objectives of Palama

Agreements have been signed with the Netherlands (Training for LG municipal managers); Germany (Government Wide M&E); Flemish (Development of women managers).

For Canada, the Project Implementation Plan (PIP) constitutes a subsidiary arrangement pursuant to the General Agreement on Development Cooperation between the Government of Canada and the Government of the Republic of South Africa and sets out the responsibilities of Canada and South Africa in relation to the implementation of the Project (e.g. Regional Capacity Building with Burundi, Rwanda and Southern Sudan and the Gender Mainstreaming Project)

The PIP has three signatories: Palama, CIDA and the NT While Palama as implementing agency for the CIDA Regional Capacity

Building Project but there are also insititutional agreements with MDI partners in Burundi, Rwanda and Southern Sudan

The results based management approach, with the logical frame approach (LFA) as the planning tool, has been adopted by Palama as its ODA strategy as it specifies outputs (results) to be achieved.

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Donor funded projects for 2008/09 CIDA – R70m for South-South partnership to build MDI capability in Burundi,

Rwanda and Southern Sudan. Progress to date – Baseline Study and Training Needs Analysis finalised. Curriculum development in progress.

R20m funding received from African Renaissance Fund for training and refurbishment of ENA building. Training for public service and support for the Ecole Nationale Administration (ENA) in DRC. 2,300 DRC officials were trained since training started February 2007.

The Netherlands provided R2.4m to pilot for equipping Municipal Managers with core skills for improved service delivery. Training material is customised and training coordination will start as soon as curriculum review of learning material is completed.

Tri-lateral cooperation between Palama/AMDIN/JICA to provide African Management Development Institutes Network (AMDIN) with Training of Trainers course in French to Francophone countries. Since inception of the project Palama assisted AMDIN with the training of 72 officials from 31 African countries.

Extension approved for Government Wide M&E funded through GTZ submitted financial expenditure report to get the next draw down.

New developments: Funding proposal in process to be developed for three Palama Branches (LFA sessions done to be integrated into one consolidated plan) for submission to InWEnt.

GTZ provided in –kind contributions for HRM; MIP and inter governmental workshops

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Way Forward and Next Steps

Further transformation of Palama is underway Strategic planning workshop will be held before the end of

December 2009 The comprehensive strategy that will emerge from the workshop

will inform other process like the business model Palama is committed to achieve its set performance training

targets, including Minister’s four priorities: Breaking Barriers to Entry experienced by unemployed graduates and

women outside the main centres of South Africa Instilling leadership qualities the public service Induction of new public servants Supporting the public service reconstruction in post-conflict countries

on the continent

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Thank You