Leadership Challenges and the Role of African MDIs Presentation at the Seminar on Public Sector Leadership Capacity Development for Good Governance in Africa Kampala, Uganda, 27-30 January 2004 Bobby Soobrayan Director-General: South African Management Development Institute (SAMDI)
Exploring the leadership challenges Challenges contained in three categories of impulses The nature and trajectory of Globalisation Growing appeal for a new discourse on governance and recognition of the link between governance and development National challenges in context of consolidation of Pan African institutions and a Pan African programme
Nature and trajectory of Globalisation Big error to view the trajectory of globalisation as inevitable; impervious to agency Asian financial crisis, epidemics, human displacement - Powerful reminders that national borders are extremely permeable In Sept 2002 we celebrated the Jhb Declaration of the WSSD as a triumph for multilateralism and the growing consensus on the global public good A few months later, with the war in Iraq, we saw the most strident departure from multilateralism in more than half a century
Nature and trajectory of Globalisation The 2003 WTO negotiations in Cancun, Mexico dealt a blow to the hopes that the South had invested in the Doha round of trade negotiations
Governance discourse A governance discourse that is shaping the conception of the state and how it relates to civil society and all spheres of social and economic endeavor is gaining widespread appeal However, continue to see efforts by the North to impose a particular conception of governance on the South Coinciding with establishment of the African Peer Review mechanism, were some spectacular governance failures in Northern countries and a threat to global governance
The Public Sector and the African State Cannot assume political homogeneity across the continent, but submit that global conjuncture imposes an imperative on Africa for collaboration and collective responses to African Public Goods The contribution of historical and social contexts, traditions, values, culture and indigenous knowledge systems shapes what can work in any country Many compelling reasons that discount the retreat of the state as an option for Africa
National Challenges While many challenges flow from the regional and global contexts, there are significant national challenges that must be accounted for To illustrate, some urgent national challenges include the need to: Improve Institutional capacity and social capital development Continue with public sector reform to improve credibility, effectiveness and efficiency Improve in public leadership and management Focus on citizens (citizen charters), values, ethics, etc. Plan for the sustainability and reproduction of the public sector Improve technical policy capacity
Implications of challenges Conjunctural context raises many significant challenges for Leadership capacity in the Public Sector of all countries All countries will have to provide enabling institutional conditions and capacity to meet these challenges Cannot conceive of the role of national MDIs in isolation from the challenges Powerful opportunities have emerged (NEPAD, AU, Charter for the Public Service in Africa, adopted at the Windhoek conference in February 2001, Stellenbosch Programme in May 2003)
Some propositions on the role of national MDIs Strong and effective national MDIs are a critical and necessary condition for successfully meeting the challenges There is a positive feedback relationship between Improved effectiveness of national MDIs and improved public sector leadership capacity Leadership development strategies and interventions must be responsive, sustained, integrated with delivery, inserted in and reflective of historical, social and indigenous knowledge systems and capable of sustaining and reproducing critical mass of public sector leadership within each country
Some propositions on the role of national MDIs (continued) The utilisation, validity, scope and impact of research on the public sector is vastly improved if it is conducted by effective and responsive national MDIs The role of regional and international leadership development agencies and programmes are critically important, but not sufficient The relationship between these and national MDIs must be collaborative and reciprocal to deal with leadership development around regional public goods, to achieve economies of scale and to catalyse local capacity
Recognising the role of African MDIs 3 rd Pan African Conference of Ministers of Public Service affirmed, in the Windhoek declaration, the crucial role of MDIs and need to develop and strengthen capacity to meet the challenges The 4 th Conference (May 2003, Stellenbosch) adopted a continental partnership programme on Governance and Public Admin, to be implemented within the fold of NEPAD. This programme of the 4 th Conference called for supportive interventions directed at MDIs, to be lead by DPMF
A forum for African MDIs: : African Management Development Institutes Network (AMDIN) Established in 2002, by network of MDIs through an initiative by DPMF Interim executive elected at 2 nd meeting in Dec. 2003, comprising KIA (Uganda), ZIPAM (Zimbabwe) and ASCON (Nigeria) Resolved to mobilise participation of all African MDIs Ethiopia and South Africa mandated to make presentation to this Kampala seminar and to bring initiative to attention of African Ministers of Public Service, which we will do at the meeting tomorrow
Rationale for AMDIN Institutional Development Support Resource leverage and exchange Knowledge exchange and development
Draft Mission and Vision Vision : For MDIs to be centers of excellence capable of responding to African development challenges and global engagements Mission: To create for African MDIs a platform that articulates their collective voice and that promotes mutual partnership and collaboration with a view to developing leadership and management capacity in response to the needs of the African people and their governments
Immediate Objectives The central objective at present is to mobilise the participation of all African MDIs Consequently, the vision, mission and strategic plan are all provisional, in order that people just entering the process can influence and shape the institution being constituted
Draft Strategic Plan Dynamic document Refined Strategic Plan to be tabled for adoption at AMDIN General Assembly in Dec 2004 Posted on AMDIN website and published in DPMN bulletin to facilitate engagement and feedback
Seek to effect Vision and Mission through the following Activities Annual conference of MDIs Directors Forum Side event at IASIA Newsletter Directory of MDIs Clearing house for Curriculum & Case Study material Facilitation of research and training partnerships
Seek to effect Vision and Mission through the following Activities Facilitation of personnel exchange Support members to promote Assessment and Quality Assurance Production of Journal and Special Issue publications Serve as collective voice and lobby on behalf of members Facilitate policy communities
Current programme Mobilise all African MDIs Interim executive to draft constitution for for consideration of the Dec 2004 AMDIN General Assembly Core activities: (1) Research and consultancy, and (2) Curriculum and Training. Leadership of these core activities assigned in interim to the Ethiopian Civil Service College (ECSC), the South African Management Development Institute (SAMDI) and the Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration (GIMPA)
Current Programme (continued) Supportive activities in the current programme: Organising the annual conference Preparing a directory of MDIs Administration of the Website Research and training partnerships Assessment and quality support Producing publications such as newsletters and journals
Concluding Comments Aide Memoire for this seminar indicates following objectives: (a) design of Africa wide 3yr prog for leadership development, and (b) develop framework and network for continuous activities in public sector leadership development in Africa
Concluding Comments AMDIN is critical to achieving these objectives The strategic objective for MDIs, in response mandate of the Stellenbosch conference, is to create a convergence between mission, practice and local relevance Continental collaboration for reciprocal capacity development, while striving for outcomes-focused national relevance