Dinelago Mutota

Namibia gained Independence on 21 March 1990 and since then, we have been in an era of democracy, reform and transformation. Yet, the public service in Namibia remains constant and no change has been made to reform public service delivery in Namibia. 

Therefore, transforming the public service in Namibia is a crucial step towards achieving sustainable development and effective governance, which is essential for the advancement of the Namibian economy and the well-being of its people. 

The Mo Ibrahim Foundation defines governance as “the provision of the social, political, economic and environmental goods and services that every citizen has the right to expect from their governments, and that a government has the responsibility to deliver to its citizens”. 

The public service plays an important role in delivering services to citizens, promoting economic growth and safeguarding the rule of law. However, in recent years, the public service in Namibia has been plagued by corruption, poor governance, ineffective institutions, as well as a lack of accountability and transparency. 

These challenges are hindering the progress of the country and severely affecting service delivery, development and public trust in the government. Therefore, the Namibian government needs to undertake comprehensive reforms to enhance the quality of service delivery and governance, and ensure accountability and transparency in the public service. This will result in formulating a more efficient and effective public service with an accountable system. 

Innovation in public service delivery is fundamental for improving public service performance. The productivity of Namibia’s public service has become a major concern to public management scholars, and calls have been made to scale up service quality.

 There has been a significant shift in the field of public management and administration, and the government needs to realise the need for innovation to move toward treating citizens as customers. Subsequently, President Sam Nujoma launched the Namibian Public Service Charter in 1997 with the aim of enhancing public service delivery, accountability and transparency in public service, yet it seems as if this charter is only good on paper and not good in practice. 

Applause should be given for the existence of this charter, as it acknowledges the need to improve the quality of service being rendered to the citizens and the need to disclose how public services are managed. It is very unfortunate that the Namibian Public Service Charter is not being utilised to transform the public service in Namibia. 

Therefore, emphasis should also be put on transforming the public servant, who is the individual behind service delivery. Thus, there is an urgent need to transform the public servant’s mentality and approach towards their work. 

With an increase in the complexities of governance, public servants must possess the skill of innovation to find soluble solutions to arising challenges in public service delivery. 

Finding new approaches will make public services more efficient and effective. This will result in citizens having trust in the government and contributing to the betterment of society. 

Thus, the government needs to implement effective management systems that set clear performance targets, provide regular feedback, and reward high performers. This can help improve public service quality and hold public servants accountable for their performance. 

It is, therefore, time to reform the public sector to create a more efficient, effective and responsive public service that can better meet the needs of the citizens and promote economic growth and good governance in Namibia.

*Dinelago Mutota is a 3rd year Public Management student, fuelled by a deep passion for public administration and governance.