South African Management Development Institute: Progress Report

Meeting report

PUBLIC SERVICE AND ADMINISTRATION PORTFOLIO COMMITTEE
4th June 2003
SOUTH AFRICAN MANAGEMENT DEVELOPMENT INSTITUTE (SAMDI): PROGRESS REPORT

Chairperson: Mr P Gomomo

Documents handed out:
Impact of Education and Training on Public Service Delivery: Reflections on SAMDI's Mandate, Performance and Strategic Directions (PowerPoint Presentation)

SUMMARY
The briefing highlighted the enormity of the task faced by SAMDI, particularly in the context of developments on the African continent as a whole.

MINUTES
Impact of Education and Training on Public Service Delivery
Mr B Soobrayan, Director General: SAMDI, briefed the Committee on the background to SAMDI's mandate as well as challenges facing management in the public sector,

Discussion
Dr U Roopnarain (IFP) thanked SAMDI for a comprehensive briefing. She emphasised the importance of SAMDI's role in change management and the need for a creative approach to the funding challenges it appeared to be facing.

Ms B Mentor (ANC) endorsed Dr Roopnarain's sentiments.

Mr L Kgwele (ANC) acknowledged the enormity and complexity of the task facing SAMDI in building management capacity in response to the imperatives of the New Partnership for Africa's Development (Nepad). However, SAMDI also needed to give attention to management training at local government level. Regarding progress with the recovery of training costs from end-users, he asked SAMDI for more detail. Referring to empowerment legislation, he asked whether this gave SAMDI the right to intervene in private as well as public institutions.

Mr Soobrayan replied that the Public Finance Management Act provided a framework within which training interventions sought to develop management capacity. On the issue of cost recovery, SAMDI was in the process of reviewing its strategy. The SAMDI terms of reference did allow for training services to be rendered outside the public sector. There were large numbers of private consultants exploiting the training opportunities stemming from empowerment legislation, and SAMDI was in the process of drawing up guidelines and criteria in terms of which standards might need to be set.

Mr T Abrahams (UDM) reiterated earlier comments about the difficult task faced by SAMDI in the context of developments on the African continent.

Ms Mentor added that ongoing technological advancements made it difficult for Government institutions to keep abreast but that they needed to do so if they were to gain credibility as vehicles for delivery in respect of development and basic services.