The government has a mandate for change and the civil service establishment has the key responsibility of bringing about that transformation. The prime minister, Navin Ramgoolam, and some of his close collaborators had a brainstorming session last Saturday with top civil service staff at Maritim Hotel in Balaclava. He told them what is expected of them in terms of delivery of the government programme.

After the interaction with permanent secretaries, chief executive officers and other government department bosses, the prime minister told l?express. ?There is a lot of work to be done and we want to see results that will change the lives of the people. (?) Elections are behind us. We now have the opportunity of shaping a new Mauritius?.

With the coming into power of a new team, the public administration is also being entrusted with a new mission. ?The determination of policies is the responsibility of ministers. (?) You can however become the catalyst of change in terms of ideas, innovation and delivery,? he said.

Need for a big shift

Public officers will have a big role to play in translating the government?s vision of ?putting people first? into reality. Only a shake-up of the service can really bring a meaningful change to people?s lives. Ramgoolam says his government is committed to putting an end to what he called ?bureaucratic inertia?.

This is in itself a major project and will require a big shift not only in terms of organisational structure and staffing, but also in terms of a more positive attitude of public servants towards serving people and towards innovative ideas and practices.

The performance and the image of the public service have for too long been undermined by corruption, gratuitous meddling of politicians in decision-making, resistance to change and lack of innovation at various levels of the establishment.

All ministries will have a reform unit that will reflect and work on redesigning the administration but also on skills development and staff motivation. A civil service college will be set up to provide on-going training to civil servants. Government will also introduce a Public Service Excellence Award that will reward good performance.

Improving the delivery of services to the public also entails a modern interface that truly makes life easier for the people. Navin Ramgoolam promises that the provision of services via the Web will be a key component of the reform programme.