Review 3 final 2 - TAU - National Treasury

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TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE UNIT REVIEW | Blending Voice and Text An intervention of this kind takes the issue of capacity in the public service well beyond “better service delivery”, important as that is. It opens up the broader issue of the way government and citizens engage with each other. It implies active citizenship. Building community capacity can certainly be seen as part of organizational development in the public sector: it leads to the big “so what” question about OD, because it recognizes that a key test of institutional effectiveness is the way citizens judge the quality and relevance and government services. Perhaps the TAU has ventured into this area already It may be well placed to do so. It is part of the national government, of course – indeed, part of a powerful central agency, the National Treasury. But, the TAU does not directly exercise power towards South African communities – it is not in a regulatory or compliance role, nor a service-delivery role, nor a representative role. An intervention to build community capacity to monitor and assess how government entities perform such roles could of course be quite sensitive – the TAU could be seen as over-stepping its boundaries by engaging directly with its clients’ constituencies. Yet, in a way, the Unit has already done so: its videos provide a platform for community members to speak about improved services from public agencies. This suggestion implies going a step further and investing in the capacity of community members to monitor, assess and negotiate such services. A pilot might be in order – not only because of the possible sensitivity of such an initiative, but because work of this kind can be both lengthy and time-consuming, as the Brazilian example suggests. 3) A third opportunity arises from the question, “What can a development partnership contribute to the OD ‘project’ in SA” The conventional response would be “finance”, delivered and managed in accordance with the Paris and Accra principles. There is value in that, for sure. But the TAU could legitimately build on the thread of reciprocity that runs through the discourse of Paris and Accra, and issue a friendly challenge to its international development partners to equip themselves with practical expertise in institutional development. UNDP has made such an investment over the years, for example, so there is a precedent for doing this within the donor community. The change implicit in this suggestion is that South Africa would draft “the job description” – with potentially some very exciting and innovative spaces being opened up... Again, thank you for allowing me to adding my voice to your publication – it has been good to ponder and reflect, and reflect again! John Saxby Consultant in International Development 24 page Enabling change for development
TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE UNIT REVIEW | Gender mainstreaming in governance Gender mainstreaming in governance: Extending the Frame Mainstreaming gender in governance forces one to think about the roles that men and women play in governance. In keeping with the idea that networks are a pervasive feature of modern governance, it goes without saying that mainstreaming gender also refers to the various networks that men and women form in achieving their identified objectives of ordered rule and collective action. The development of a Ministry dedicated to Women, Children and People with Disabilities is a valid example of a highly formalized institution that is set up to facilitate such networks. Civil society and social capital also create their own powerful forms – both formal and informal. Furthermore, the ANC’s 52 nd National Conference in 2007, in its 109 th resolution on social transformation, resolved that an institutional mechanism be put in place in pursuit of women’s emancipation and broadly addressing gender issues (ANC 2007: 16). As early as the year 2000 South Africa has had a National Policy Framework for Women’s Empowerment and Gender Equality. This policy framework ushered in an understanding that transformation of unequal gender relations requires the involvement of men and women (Office of the Status of Women 2000: 17). South Africa is also signatory to the Convention on Elimination of Discrimination Against Women (Todes, Sithole and Williams 2007: 9), and the significance of this is that South Africa has recognised the need to look into women’s social exclusion on the basis of gender and poverty. Training of women councilors as local government leaders is another issue that has been dominating the policy arena in South Africa. In this particular area, the leadership role of women in local government integrated development planning has also been raised as needing attention (Todes, Sithole and Williams 2007: 1-3). Public service commission and gender mainstreaming 1 The PSC, in 2006, concluded that women’s access to political power and decision-making has improved since the 1994 elections (RSA 2006: 70). There is a strong representation of women in the national and provincial spheres of government but the challenge to institutions in the Public Service is to change their culture in order to be more responsive to the needs of women civil servants (RSA 2006: 70). The recommendations given then were that more emphasis be placed on (RSA 2006: 75-76): 1 Information derived from the State of the Public Service (SOPS) Report 2009 page 25 Enabling change for development
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Review 3 final 2 - TAU - National Treasury

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