Ghana has established a “New Approach to Public Sector Reform” that aims to concentrate reform efforts on results, most notably the achievement of the government’s primary objectives of
(i) job creation and
(ii) food production, distribution, and processing.
The reform is being driven from the center of government, by the Presidency, and by improving collective cabinet level coordination, while acknowledging that execution will remain the responsibility of line ministries, who often already have well-articulated sector strategies.
These policies are mostly in line with Ghana’s two main goals and are supported by the country’s major international partners.
Summary of Contents
Public Sector Reforms in Ghana pdf
Download public sector reforms in Ghana pdf here.
The new approach emphasizes the need for better coordination of government activities, as well as ways to make senior managers more accountable and innovative partnerships with the private sector that could help ease the country’s tight budget.
This report outlines the findings of a four-day fact-finding tour that took place from October 4 to 8, 2010. The report is broken into the following four sections:
The report applauds the emphasis on delivering specific changes in job development, food production, delivery, and processing.
The government should consider further strengthening its delivery model, as foreshadowed in part by the “New Approach,” by establishing a delivery unit under the President’s Policy Unit to aid in central government coordination and to remove bottlenecks to essential changes.
Find also: Challenges of Public Sector Reforms in Ghana
Additionally, the report makes recommendations on how Ghana may address some specific difficulties by enhancing the Presidency’s role in supporting delivery.
Part B: Identifying and monitoring the supply chains for food production and job development, as well as illustrating the supply chain for food production and PPPs, a critical component of job creation.
The report notes that the single pay spine model adopted in Ghana is somewhat unique in terms of design and sequencing compared to those implemented in other countries and recommends deferring implementation until these issues are resolved.
The costs associated with establishing the Ghana Single Pay Spine are projected to be substantial. There will almost certainly be further refinements to the single pay spine arrangements, and some very urgent steps will need to be taken in light of the fiscal situation.
Read also: What are Public Sector Reforms
In terms of managing from the center of government, one section of the report identifies two critical roles for the center of government (defined as the President’s and Vice President’s offices, as well as the Cabinet Office): ensuring that government is “reliable” and supervising reform.
These responsibilities require severe capacity shortages, necessitating a more in-depth technical examination of staff and organizational structures.
This is a critical matter. If a high-level institution or mechanism, such as a delivery unit, is to be built at the presidency level, it must be sufficiently resilient to endure political transitions while assisting in the implementation of reforms.
It will be critical to mitigate the risks associated with this strategy, particularly in terms of duplication of units, functions, and duties, as well as the requirement for wide buy-in from key players throughout the government.
The broader public sector reforms that will almost certainly be required include more work on inter-and intra-sectoral coordination, performance management, and the use of PPPs and other efficiency measures in light of the Single Pay Spine’s fiscal ramifications.
Overview of Public Sector Reforms in Ghana
Most developing countries, including Ghana, have been implementing public sector reform (PSR) programs since the early 1980s in an effort to transform their public sector to be more productive, efficient, and effective, thereby providing world-class services to the general public and ensuring long-term national development.
In comparison to the resources, efforts, and time invested in creating and implementing these treatments, the results and outcomes have been small and usually unsatisfactory. The role of various reform institutions in each phase was investigated in this study.
To reach this goal, the study looked at the fundamental question of what the influence of Ghana’s reform institutions has been on delivering reform outcomes and results, as well as their long-term sustainability in the public sector.
Ghana has established a “New Approach to Public Sector Reform” that aims to concentrate reform efforts on results, most notably the achievement of the government’s primary objectives of
(i) job creation and
(ii) food production, distribution, and processing.
The reform is being driven from the center of government, by the Presidency, and by improving collective cabinet level coordination, while acknowledging that execution will remain the responsibility of line ministries, who often already have well-articulated sector strategies.
These policies are mostly in line with Ghana’s two main goals and are supported by the country’s major international partners.
Public Sector Reforms in Ghana pdf
Download public sector reforms in Ghana pdf here.
The new approach emphasizes the need for better coordination of government activities, as well as ways to make senior managers more accountable and innovative partnerships with the private sector that could help ease the country’s tight budget.
This report outlines the findings of a four-day fact-finding tour that took place from October 4 to 8, 2010. The report is broken into the following four sections:
The report applauds the emphasis on delivering specific changes in job development, food production, delivery, and processing.
The government should consider further strengthening its delivery model, as foreshadowed in part by the “New Approach,” by establishing a delivery unit under the President’s Policy Unit to aid in central government coordination and to remove bottlenecks to essential changes.
Find also: Challenges of Public Sector Reforms in Ghana
Additionally, the report makes recommendations on how Ghana may address some specific difficulties by enhancing the Presidency’s role in supporting delivery.
Part B: Identifying and monitoring the supply chains for food production and job development, as well as illustrating the supply chain for food production and PPPs, a critical component of job creation.
The report notes that the single pay spine model adopted in Ghana is somewhat unique in terms of design and sequencing compared to those implemented in other countries and recommends deferring implementation until these issues are resolved.
The costs associated with establishing the Ghana Single Pay Spine are projected to be substantial. There will almost certainly be further refinements to the single pay spine arrangements, and some very urgent steps will need to be taken in light of the fiscal situation.
Read also: What are Public Sector Reforms
In terms of managing from the center of government, one section of the report identifies two critical roles for the center of government (defined as the President’s and Vice President’s offices, as well as the Cabinet Office): ensuring that government is “reliable” and supervising reform.
These responsibilities require severe capacity shortages, necessitating a more in-depth technical examination of staff and organizational structures.
This is a critical matter. If a high-level institution or mechanism, such as a delivery unit, is to be built at the presidency level, it must be sufficiently resilient to endure political transitions while assisting in the implementation of reforms.
It will be critical to mitigate the risks associated with this strategy, particularly in terms of duplication of units, functions, and duties, as well as the requirement for wide buy-in from key players throughout the government.
The broader public sector reforms that will almost certainly be required include more work on inter-and intra-sectoral coordination, performance management, and the use of PPPs and other efficiency measures in light of the Single Pay Spine’s fiscal ramifications.
Overview of Public Sector Reforms in Ghana
Most developing countries, including Ghana, have been implementing public sector reform (PSR) programs since the early 1980s in an effort to transform their public sector to be more productive, efficient, and effective, thereby providing world-class services to the general public and ensuring long-term national development.
In comparison to the resources, efforts, and time invested in creating and implementing these treatments, the results and outcomes have been small and usually unsatisfactory. The role of various reform institutions in each phase was investigated in this study.
To reach this goal, the study looked at the fundamental question of what the influence of Ghana’s reform institutions has been on delivering reform outcomes and results, as well as their long-term sustainability in the public sector.
In addition, the study looked at how the reform institution’s performance was affected by the way it was set up, and how both factors played a role in the documented results and outcomes.
Key people’s views on PSRs were gathered and looked at, including Ghanaian public servants, specialists who have worked with different reform institutions in different ways, and people from development partners who have been Ghana’s main source of money and technical help.
The findings of this study show that the reform institutions did not last long enough for any one political regime, which led to a lot of changes in the institutions, a lack of money and other resources for reform, and, most importantly, a lack of political will and commitment to reform.
Finally, the report suggests that Ghana’s reforms require an independent and autonomous institution. In addition, lessons have been learned and recommendations have been made for future implementation of the reform agenda in Ghana’s public sector that will ensure sustainable and successful results and outcomes based on the observations and other observations presented in this paper.
Article: This one will not only add to the body of knowledge about PSR reforms, but it will also give a detailed explanation and analysis of how reforms have worked, what they have done, and how they will work in the future.
Introduction to Public Sector Reforms in Ghana
The effectiveness and efficiency of a country’s public sector are important factors in its growth and development. Since its introduction in the early 1980s, the term “public sector reforms” has grown in popularity and become a global phenomenon.
In developing nations like Ghana, good governance and efficient public service delivery are impossible to achieve without public sector reform. Lessons from the past show that reform programs were put in place in a disconnected and sometimes inconsistent way, which led to inefficiency, unsustainable consequences, and unsatisfactory results.
Deliberations about PSR today are based on old and unsolved questions in political-administrative philosophy.
First, how important are government institutions and what effects do they have? Second, what are the underlying forces that cause governmental institutions to be established, maintained, altered, or discarded? And finally, what is the scope and under what circumstances are forms of government a result of careful design and reform? (Olsen, 2017).
The key conduits via which governments pursue their development agendas are public-sector institutions. The government, as well as all publicly controlled or supported agencies, corporations, and other entities that supply public programs, goods, and services, are considered part of the public sector.
The public sector is also defined as an entity that delivers publicly funded, owned, and operated services to the general public.
The success of national development depends on the effectiveness and efficiency of each country’s public sector.
Furthermore, since its inception in the early to mid-80s, reforms in Ghana’s public sector have become commonplace.
Without restructuring the public sector, it is nearly impossible for any country to promote and/or achieve good governance and an efficient and effective system.
However, past lessons show that reform initiatives and programs were not properly executed in the latter and were fractured to some extent, resulting in reform outcomes that were disjointed, ineffectual, and generally unsustainable.
For example, in most Sub-Saharan African countries, including Ghana, the first wave of reforms concentrated primarily on structural reforms, with little or no attention paid to the impact on service delivery and other factors.
In most developing countries, political pressures frequently outweigh the great benefits of changes, causing reforms to be halted or abandoned.
On the other hand, countries with a lot of political will and political leaders who want to make changes have had real results.
Fiscal and economic crises, internal pressures, and the impact of foreign financial institutions and development partners are all factors that drive PSRs.
The philosophy of New Public Management (NPM) reform, which typically promotes the acceptance and adaption of private sector-styled management practices into public sector management, has largely influenced the creation and implementation of reforms in recent times.
Decentralization, salary and job changes, and other changes that aren’t part of the NPM have also been important (Bangura & Larbi, 2006).
1. Ghana’s Public Sector Reform Evolution
The public sector in Ghana has a number of structural, institutional, and fiduciary issues that obstruct the efficient and effective delivery of public goods and services. As a result, successive governments have attempted a number of measures aimed at reforming Ghana’s public sector.
However, the reforms didn’t achieve the change and improvement in the public sector’s performance that they were supposed to.
Ghana has established a “New Approach to Public Sector Reform” that aims to concentrate reform efforts on results, most notably the achievement of the government’s primary objectives of
(i) job creation and
(ii) food production, distribution, and processing.
The reform is being driven from the center of government, by the Presidency, and by improving collective cabinet level coordination, while acknowledging that execution will remain the responsibility of line ministries, who often already have well-articulated sector strategies.
These policies are mostly in line with Ghana’s two main goals and are supported by the country’s major international partners.
Public Sector Reforms in Ghana pdf
Download public sector reforms in Ghana pdf here.
The new approach emphasizes the need for better coordination of government activities, as well as ways to make senior managers more accountable and innovative partnerships with the private sector that could help ease the country’s tight budget.
This report outlines the findings of a four-day fact-finding tour that took place from October 4 to 8, 2010. The report is broken into the following four sections:
The report applauds the emphasis on delivering specific changes in job development, food production, delivery, and processing.
The government should consider further strengthening its delivery model, as foreshadowed in part by the “New Approach,” by establishing a delivery unit under the President’s Policy Unit to aid in central government coordination and to remove bottlenecks to essential changes.
Find also: Challenges of Public Sector Reforms in Ghana
Additionally, the report makes recommendations on how Ghana may address some specific difficulties by enhancing the Presidency’s role in supporting delivery.
Part B: Identifying and monitoring the supply chains for food production and job development, as well as illustrating the supply chain for food production and PPPs, a critical component of job creation.
The report notes that the single pay spine model adopted in Ghana is somewhat unique in terms of design and sequencing compared to those implemented in other countries and recommends deferring implementation until these issues are resolved.
The costs associated with establishing the Ghana Single Pay Spine are projected to be substantial. There will almost certainly be further refinements to the single pay spine arrangements, and some very urgent steps will need to be taken in light of the fiscal situation.
Read also: What are Public Sector Reforms
In terms of managing from the center of government, one section of the report identifies two critical roles for the center of government (defined as the President’s and Vice President’s offices, as well as the Cabinet Office): ensuring that government is “reliable” and supervising reform.
These responsibilities require severe capacity shortages, necessitating a more in-depth technical examination of staff and organizational structures.
This is a critical matter. If a high-level institution or mechanism, such as a delivery unit, is to be built at the presidency level, it must be sufficiently resilient to endure political transitions while assisting in the implementation of reforms.
It will be critical to mitigate the risks associated with this strategy, particularly in terms of duplication of units, functions, and duties, as well as the requirement for wide buy-in from key players throughout the government.
The broader public sector reforms that will almost certainly be required include more work on inter-and intra-sectoral coordination, performance management, and the use of PPPs and other efficiency measures in light of the Single Pay Spine’s fiscal ramifications.
Overview of Public Sector Reforms in Ghana
Most developing countries, including Ghana, have been implementing public sector reform (PSR) programs since the early 1980s in an effort to transform their public sector to be more productive, efficient, and effective, thereby providing world-class services to the general public and ensuring long-term national development.
In comparison to the resources, efforts, and time invested in creating and implementing these treatments, the results and outcomes have been small and usually unsatisfactory. The role of various reform institutions in each phase was investigated in this study.
To reach this goal, the study looked at the fundamental question of what the influence of Ghana’s reform institutions has been on delivering reform outcomes and results, as well as their long-term sustainability in the public sector.
In addition, the study looked at how the reform institution’s performance was affected by the way it was set up, and how both factors played a role in the documented results and outcomes.
Key people’s views on PSRs were gathered and looked at, including Ghanaian public servants, specialists who have worked with different reform institutions in different ways, and people from development partners who have been Ghana’s main source of money and technical help.
The findings of this study show that the reform institutions did not last long enough for any one political regime, which led to a lot of changes in the institutions, a lack of money and other resources for reform, and, most importantly, a lack of political will and commitment to reform.
Finally, the report suggests that Ghana’s reforms require an independent and autonomous institution. In addition, lessons have been learned and recommendations have been made for future implementation of the reform agenda in Ghana’s public sector that will ensure sustainable and successful results and outcomes based on the observations and other observations presented in this paper.
Article: This one will not only add to the body of knowledge about PSR reforms, but it will also give a detailed explanation and analysis of how reforms have worked, what they have done, and how they will work in the future.
Introduction to Public Sector Reforms in Ghana
The effectiveness and efficiency of a country’s public sector are important factors in its growth and development. Since its introduction in the early 1980s, the term “public sector reforms” has grown in popularity and become a global phenomenon.
In developing nations like Ghana, good governance and efficient public service delivery are impossible to achieve without public sector reform. Lessons from the past show that reform programs were put in place in a disconnected and sometimes inconsistent way, which led to inefficiency, unsustainable consequences, and unsatisfactory results.
Deliberations about PSR today are based on old and unsolved questions in political-administrative philosophy.
First, how important are government institutions and what effects do they have? Second, what are the underlying forces that cause governmental institutions to be established, maintained, altered, or discarded? And finally, what is the scope and under what circumstances are forms of government a result of careful design and reform? (Olsen, 2017).
The key conduits via which governments pursue their development agendas are public-sector institutions. The government, as well as all publicly controlled or supported agencies, corporations, and other entities that supply public programs, goods, and services, are considered part of the public sector.
The public sector is also defined as an entity that delivers publicly funded, owned, and operated services to the general public.
The success of national development depends on the effectiveness and efficiency of each country’s public sector.
Furthermore, since its inception in the early to mid-80s, reforms in Ghana’s public sector have become commonplace.
Without restructuring the public sector, it is nearly impossible for any country to promote and/or achieve good governance and an efficient and effective system.
However, past lessons show that reform initiatives and programs were not properly executed in the latter and were fractured to some extent, resulting in reform outcomes that were disjointed, ineffectual, and generally unsustainable.
For example, in most Sub-Saharan African countries, including Ghana, the first wave of reforms concentrated primarily on structural reforms, with little or no attention paid to the impact on service delivery and other factors.
In most developing countries, political pressures frequently outweigh the great benefits of changes, causing reforms to be halted or abandoned.
On the other hand, countries with a lot of political will and political leaders who want to make changes have had real results.
Fiscal and economic crises, internal pressures, and the impact of foreign financial institutions and development partners are all factors that drive PSRs.
The philosophy of New Public Management (NPM) reform, which typically promotes the acceptance and adaption of private sector-styled management practices into public sector management, has largely influenced the creation and implementation of reforms in recent times.
Decentralization, salary and job changes, and other changes that aren’t part of the NPM have also been important (Bangura & Larbi, 2006).
1. Ghana’s Public Sector Reform Evolution
The public sector in Ghana has a number of structural, institutional, and fiduciary issues that obstruct the efficient and effective delivery of public goods and services. As a result, successive governments have attempted a number of measures aimed at reforming Ghana’s public sector.
However, the reforms didn’t achieve the change and improvement in the public sector’s performance that they were supposed to.
Ghana has established a “New Approach to Public Sector Reform” that aims to concentrate reform efforts on results, most notably the achievement of the government’s primary objectives of
(i) job creation and
(ii) food production, distribution, and processing.
The reform is being driven from the center of government, by the Presidency, and by improving collective cabinet level coordination, while acknowledging that execution will remain the responsibility of line ministries, who often already have well-articulated sector strategies.
These policies are mostly in line with Ghana’s two main goals and are supported by the country’s major international partners.
Public Sector Reforms in Ghana pdf
Download public sector reforms in Ghana pdf here.
The new approach emphasizes the need for better coordination of government activities, as well as ways to make senior managers more accountable and innovative partnerships with the private sector that could help ease the country’s tight budget.
This report outlines the findings of a four-day fact-finding tour that took place from October 4 to 8, 2010. The report is broken into the following four sections:
The report applauds the emphasis on delivering specific changes in job development, food production, delivery, and processing.
The government should consider further strengthening its delivery model, as foreshadowed in part by the “New Approach,” by establishing a delivery unit under the President’s Policy Unit to aid in central government coordination and to remove bottlenecks to essential changes.
Find also: Challenges of Public Sector Reforms in Ghana
Additionally, the report makes recommendations on how Ghana may address some specific difficulties by enhancing the Presidency’s role in supporting delivery.
Part B: Identifying and monitoring the supply chains for food production and job development, as well as illustrating the supply chain for food production and PPPs, a critical component of job creation.
The report notes that the single pay spine model adopted in Ghana is somewhat unique in terms of design and sequencing compared to those implemented in other countries and recommends deferring implementation until these issues are resolved.
The costs associated with establishing the Ghana Single Pay Spine are projected to be substantial. There will almost certainly be further refinements to the single pay spine arrangements, and some very urgent steps will need to be taken in light of the fiscal situation.
Read also: What are Public Sector Reforms
In terms of managing from the center of government, one section of the report identifies two critical roles for the center of government (defined as the President’s and Vice President’s offices, as well as the Cabinet Office): ensuring that government is “reliable” and supervising reform.
These responsibilities require severe capacity shortages, necessitating a more in-depth technical examination of staff and organizational structures.
Download public sector reforms in Ghana pdf here.
This is a critical matter. If a high-level institution or mechanism, such as a delivery unit, is to be built at the presidency level, it must be sufficiently resilient to endure political transitions while assisting in the implementation of reforms.
It will be critical to mitigate the risks associated with this strategy, particularly in terms of duplication of units, functions, and duties, as well as the requirement for wide buy-in from key players throughout the government.
The broader public sector reforms that will almost certainly be required include more work on inter-and intra-sectoral coordination, performance management, and the use of PPPs and other efficiency measures in light of the Single Pay Spine’s fiscal ramifications.
Overview of Public Sector Reforms in Ghana
Most developing countries, including Ghana, have been implementing public sector reform (PSR) programs since the early 1980s in an effort to transform their public sector to be more productive, efficient, and effective, thereby providing world-class services to the general public and ensuring long-term national development.
In comparison to the resources, efforts, and time invested in creating and implementing these treatments, the results and outcomes have been small and usually unsatisfactory. The role of various reform institutions in each phase was investigated in this study.
To reach this goal, the study looked at the fundamental question of what the influence of Ghana’s reform institutions has been on delivering reform outcomes and results, as well as their long-term sustainability in the public sector.
In addition, the study looked at how the reform institution’s performance was affected by the way it was set up, and how both factors played a role in the documented results and outcomes.
Key people’s views on PSRs were gathered and looked at, including Ghanaian public servants, specialists who have worked with different reform institutions in different ways, and people from development partners who have been Ghana’s main source of money and technical help.
The findings of this study show that the reform institutions did not last long enough for any one political regime, which led to a lot of changes in the institutions, a lack of money and other resources for reform, and, most importantly, a lack of political will and commitment to reform.
Finally, the report suggests that Ghana’s reforms require an independent and autonomous institution. In addition, lessons have been learned and recommendations have been made for future implementation of the reform agenda in Ghana’s public sector that will ensure sustainable and successful results and outcomes based on the observations and other observations presented in this paper.
Article: This one will not only add to the body of knowledge about PSR reforms, but it will also give a detailed explanation and analysis of how reforms have worked, what they have done, and how they will work in the future.
Introduction to Public Sector Reforms in Ghana
The effectiveness and efficiency of a country’s public sector are important factors in its growth and development. Since its introduction in the early 1980s, the term “public sector reforms” has grown in popularity and become a global phenomenon.
In developing nations like Ghana, good governance and efficient public service delivery are impossible to achieve without public sector reform. Lessons from the past show that reform programs were put in place in a disconnected and sometimes inconsistent way, which led to inefficiency, unsustainable consequences, and unsatisfactory results.
Deliberations about PSR today are based on old and unsolved questions in political-administrative philosophy.
First, how important are government institutions and what effects do they have? Second, what are the underlying forces that cause governmental institutions to be established, maintained, altered, or discarded? And finally, what is the scope and under what circumstances are forms of government a result of careful design and reform? (Olsen, 2017).
The key conduits via which governments pursue their development agendas are public-sector institutions. The government, as well as all publicly controlled or supported agencies, corporations, and other entities that supply public programs, goods, and services, are considered part of the public sector.
The public sector is also defined as an entity that delivers publicly funded, owned, and operated services to the general public.
The success of national development depends on the effectiveness and efficiency of each country’s public sector.
Furthermore, since its inception in the early to mid-80s, reforms in Ghana’s public sector have become commonplace.
Without restructuring the public sector, it is nearly impossible for any country to promote and/or achieve good governance and an efficient and effective system.
However, past lessons show that reform initiatives and programs were not properly executed in the latter and were fractured to some extent, resulting in reform outcomes that were disjointed, ineffectual, and generally unsustainable.
For example, in most Sub-Saharan African countries, including Ghana, the first wave of reforms concentrated primarily on structural reforms, with little or no attention paid to the impact on service delivery and other factors.
In most developing countries, political pressures frequently outweigh the great benefits of changes, causing reforms to be halted or abandoned.
On the other hand, countries with a lot of political will and political leaders who want to make changes have had real results.
Fiscal and economic crises, internal pressures, and the impact of foreign financial institutions and development partners are all factors that drive PSRs.
The philosophy of New Public Management (NPM) reform, which typically promotes the acceptance and adaption of private sector-styled management practices into public sector management, has largely influenced the creation and implementation of reforms in recent times.
Decentralization, salary and job changes, and other changes that aren’t part of the NPM have also been important (Bangura & Larbi, 2006).
1. Ghana’s Public Sector Reform Evolution
The public sector in Ghana has a number of structural, institutional, and fiduciary issues that obstruct the efficient and effective delivery of public goods and services. As a result, successive governments have attempted a number of measures aimed at reforming Ghana’s public sector.
However, the reforms didn’t achieve the change and improvement in the public sector’s performance that they were supposed to.
Download public sector reforms in Ghana pdf here.
In addition, the study looked at how the reform institution’s performance was affected by the way it was set up, and how both factors played a role in the documented results and outcomes.
Key people’s views on PSRs were gathered and looked at, including Ghanaian public servants, specialists who have worked with different reform institutions in different ways, and people from development partners who have been Ghana’s main source of money and technical help.
The findings of this study show that the reform institutions did not last long enough for any one political regime, which led to a lot of changes in the institutions, a lack of money and other resources for reform, and, most importantly, a lack of political will and commitment to reform.
Finally, the report suggests that Ghana’s reforms require an independent and autonomous institution. In addition, lessons have been learned and recommendations have been made for future implementation of the reform agenda in Ghana’s public sector that will ensure sustainable and successful results and outcomes based on the observations and other observations presented in this paper.
Article: This one will not only add to the body of knowledge about PSR reforms, but it will also give a detailed explanation and analysis of how reforms have worked, what they have done, and how they will work in the future.
Introduction to Public Sector Reforms in Ghana
The effectiveness and efficiency of a country’s public sector are important factors in its growth and development. Since its introduction in the early 1980s, the term “public sector reforms” has grown in popularity and become a global phenomenon.
In developing nations like Ghana, good governance and efficient public service delivery are impossible to achieve without public sector reform. Lessons from the past show that reform programs were put in place in a disconnected and sometimes inconsistent way, which led to inefficiency, unsustainable consequences, and unsatisfactory results.
Deliberations about PSR today are based on old and unsolved questions in political-administrative philosophy.
First, how important are government institutions and what effects do they have? Second, what are the underlying forces that cause governmental institutions to be established, maintained, altered, or discarded? And finally, what is the scope and under what circumstances are forms of government a result of careful design and reform? (Olsen, 2017).
The key conduits via which governments pursue their development agendas are public-sector institutions. The government, as well as all publicly controlled or supported agencies, corporations, and other entities that supply public programs, goods, and services, are considered part of the public sector.
The public sector is also defined as an entity that delivers publicly funded, owned, and operated services to the general public.
The success of national development depends on the effectiveness and efficiency of each country’s public sector.
Furthermore, since its inception in the early to mid-80s, reforms in Ghana’s public sector have become commonplace.
Without restructuring the public sector, it is nearly impossible for any country to promote and/or achieve good governance and an efficient and effective system.
However, past lessons show that reform initiatives and programs were not properly executed in the latter and were fractured to some extent, resulting in reform outcomes that were disjointed, ineffectual, and generally unsustainable.
For example, in most Sub-Saharan African countries, including Ghana, the first wave of reforms concentrated primarily on structural reforms, with little or no attention paid to the impact on service delivery and other factors.
In most developing countries, political pressures frequently outweigh the great benefits of changes, causing reforms to be halted or abandoned.
On the other hand, countries with a lot of political will and political leaders who want to make changes have had real results.
Fiscal and economic crises, internal pressures, and the impact of foreign financial institutions and development partners are all factors that drive PSRs.
The philosophy of New Public Management (NPM) reform, which typically promotes the acceptance and adaption of private sector-styled management practices into public sector management, has largely influenced the creation and implementation of reforms in recent times.
Decentralization, salary and job changes, and other changes that aren’t part of the NPM have also been important (Bangura & Larbi, 2006).
1. Ghana’s Public Sector Reform Evolution
The public sector in Ghana has a number of structural, institutional, and fiduciary issues that obstruct the efficient and effective delivery of public goods and services. As a result, successive governments have attempted a number of measures aimed at reforming Ghana’s public sector.
However, the reforms didn’t achieve the change and improvement in the public sector’s performance that they were supposed to.
Continue by: Download public sector reforms in Ghana pdf here.
Leave a comment