Human Resource Management in African Public …

1 Human Resource Management in African Public Sector: Current State and Future Direction Gelase Mutahaba Editor A Tool for Developing Capacities for Managing the Human Resource in Africa s Public Sector Institutions ii This Tool for Human Resource Management Capacity Development in Africa s Public Sector Institutions has been compiled from papers presented during the Workshops organised by the African Public Sector Human Resource Managers Network (APS-HRMnet). Its Publication has been made possible through funding from the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UNDESA) to whom the APS-HRMnet is greatly appreciative.

2 Table of Contents Preface and iv Notes about Contributors .. v iii Gelase Mutahaba 1 Part One: The State of Human Resource Management in African Public Sector 1. The Changing Role of Public Service Human Resource Managers: From Personnel Administration to Human Resources Management .. Benson A. Bana 10 2. Changing from Personnel Administration to Human Resource Management : An Imperative in African Public Neil Reichenberg 34 3. Emerging International Trends in Human Resource Management : Implications for the African Public John Lavelle 51 4.

3 Human Resource Management : A Neglected Element in African Public Service Gelase Mutahaba 75 5. Effective Management of Human Resources in the Public Service in Africa: Issues, challenges , and Odette Ramsigh and Ogochukwu Nzewi 87 Part Two: Professionalizing Human Resource Management in the Public Sector in Africa 6. Strengthening Capacities for Professionalism in African Public Sector: Some Reflections .. John-Mary Kauzya 103 7. Promoting Professionalism in the Civil Service in Africa: Strategic Considerations Florence N.

4 Wachira 118 8. Hard and Soft Power Strategies for Cultivating and Strengthening Professionalism in the Public Service in Africa .. John Lavelle 132 iv 9. Professionalizing Human Resource Management and Implementing Public Service Charter in the Public Service in Africa: Lessons from Faisal Issa 147 10. Promoting and Strengthening Professionalism in the Civil Service: The Ethiopian Adebabay A. Gebrekidan 170 11. Ethics, Accountability, Transparency, Integrity and Professionalism in the Public Service: The Case of Uganda .. David Ssonko 190 Part Three: Human Resource Management Selected Issues 12.

5 Performance Management in Public Service: The Case of Faisal Issa 205 13. Attracting and Retaining the Best Talent in African Public Services: challenges and John-Mary Kauzya 221 14. Human Resource Development and Economic Transformation: Experiences from George Yambesi 244 15. Work-Life Balance Policies and Women in Leadership Positions in the Education Sector: Problems and Tiyesere Mercy Chikapa Jamali 260 16. Innovation and Performance Management in the Public service: the Experience of 275 Vitoria Dias Diogo v Preface and acknowledgements Human Resource Management (HRM) is an area that has suffered much neglect for over five decades of reforming the Public service in the post-colonial Africa.

6 African countries did not recognize the strategic position of the Human Resource manager in the formulation and implementation of organizational strategies. The role of staff responsible for managing people in work places was confined to routine functions about staff entitlements, pay increments, maintaining discipline and the like. In many African Public Services, the Human Resource was not treated as a valuable asset but a cost center and Human resources managers were, and in many respects continue, to be marginalized.

7 This neglect has had disastrous consequences on various Public sector reform interventions that African countries have been embarking on. The need to strengthen the HRM function in African countries had been recognized by many fora, including the Seventh Africa Governance Forum (AGF 7) which took place in Ouagadougou (Burkina Faso) at the end of October 2007; and the Roundtable Conference of the Africa Association for Public Administration and Management (AAPAM) which was held in Accra Ghana from 6th to 10th October 2008. AGF 7 recognized the need for institutional capacity development, complemented by Human Resource development to be at the center of the process of making States capable of meeting their citizens developmental aspirations.

8 On the other hand, the AAPAM conference issued a communiqu calling for competent, knowledgeable, well-motivated, and innovative Human resources in the African Public service. With the increasing need to modernize and professionalize the Human Resource function in the Public service, Human Resource managers took initiative to establish an Africa Public Sector Human Resource Managers Network (APS-HRM-net) and urged African governments to accord it the required support. Similarly on 23rd-27th February 2009 in Arusha Tanzania, delegates attending a training workshop on Enhancing Professionalization of Human Resource Management in the Public Service in Africa recommended for the strengthening of HRM function in the Public service.

9 This book is a critically needed tool for developing the Management of HR in the African Public Service. It is a continuation of several initiatives undertaken to professionalize HRM in the Public service in Africa. It is an output of series of workshops presentations by key experts and senior practitioners and leaders of civil service departments in Africa and beyond mobilized by the APS-HRMnet. Most of the workshops and conferences were held between 2007 and 2013. They were organized by the APS-HRMnet in collaboration with the various host countries in Africa with support from the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UNDESA), AAPAM, Africa Management Development Institutes Network (AMDIN), and Africa Capacity Building Foundation (ACBF).

10 The editor is extremely grateful to all contributors and various organizations and Governments of African countries for supporting workshop proceedings in which the papers that led to the birth of this book were delivered. I am most grateful to UNDESA for accepting the request of the APS-HRMnet to provide funding for the publication process. Finally, thanks are due to my two PhD students Mr. Parestico Pastory and Mr. Edwin Babeiya for their invaluable role in the preliminary editorial process and compilation of this book draft. Gelase Mutahaba vi About the Contributors Gelase Mutahaba is Professor of Public Administration, University of Dar es salaam and concurrently Extraordinary Professor of Public Management , University of Pretoria.