Mbombela - Plans are in full swing to filter down to local level the monitoring and performance evaluation model government has instituted at national level.
These plans include developing inter-governmental agreements in the scope of services in order to develop a new approach to municipal financing and support.
Detailing the plans Dina Pule, the Deputy Minister of Performance Monitoring and Evaluation in the Presidency, said government's plan was to build a responsive, accountable, effective and efficient government system, and that it was important for all spheres of government to live up to that.
Pule is of the view that a different way of doing things in provinces and municipalities was needed and urgent steps had to be taken to address basic infrastructure and services backlogs, as well as low levels of governance and accountability.
She was speaking in Mbombela, Mpumalanga, which has been chosen as one of the provinces to pilot the plan.
In the coming weeks, Pule will also visit other provinces, where she will hold meetings with provincial executive councils aimed at ensuring interaction, preparedness and cooperation from stakeholders who will pilot the plan.
Performance evaluation projects that existed in other provinces will also be looked at to see how they could be improved.
Government is under pressure to deliver, especially with the recent developments that led to a wave of service delivery protests in South Africa.
The monitoring and evaluation in provinces will be done in coordination with the various premiers' offices. A process similar to the one where national ministers signed performance agreements with President Jacob Zuma, is on the cards to be undertaken in the provinces on a quarterly basis.
The ministerial performance agreements were introduced last year to ensure greater government accountability, with the aim of improving service delivery.
As from April, the beginning of the 2011/12 financial year, national ministers will be expected to submit bimonthly reports to President Jacob Zuma, detailing their department's progress towards achieving the 12 outcomes.
The aim, according to the ministry, is to focus more on implementation, rather than policy, which has long been a challenge. Speaking to BuaNews, Pule said the quarterly performance reports from the provinces will not only be read and filed, but government was going to proactively use them to pinpoint areas that needed improvement.
She said government was committed to showing the people of South Africa they were serious about listening to, and responding to their grievances about service delivery.
At provincial level, officials from the national Department of Monitoring and Evaluation will also make unannounced visits to hospital and traffic departments, among others, to assess delivery of services.
This will enable government to identify and respond adequately to problem areas. Part of the ministry's job, Pule said, was intended neither to centralise power nor to police provinces but it was aimed at fostering good working relationships with the provinces.
Head of communication in Mpumalanga, Lebona Mosia said Premier David Mabuza has welcomed the pilot project and will ensure MECs account.
"Proper planning and tight monitoring of the implementation plans are extremely crucial. The office of the premier will be responsible for monitoring and evaluation of the implementation plans of all departments involved in this area of work, including agreements that we would have to reach with other stakeholders," said Mosia.
In the meantime, agencies which are responsible for performance monitoring have been tasked with reviewing whether the measures they have in place are sufficient.
