Improving public service delivery in South Africa : a case of administrative reform

Abstract

The purpose of this article is to critically examine the repositioning of public administration in the context of the assumption of President Zuma in his first and second term of office which commenced on May 2009 and 2014 respectively. Firstly, the analysis considers the two ministries established in the Office of the Presidency, namely, the National Planning Commission and Performance Monitoring and Evaluation that came into effect in 2009 and subsequently consolidated into one ministry following the May 2014 elections. Secondly, the article examines the reforms introduced at the national executive that resulted into the formation of new ministries and re-organisation of the cabinet clusters after the May 2014 elections. The data collection methods used for the purpose of this article primarily include document review of existing official documents and annual reports plus a literature review. Institutional blockages that currently hinder effective public service delivery in the Public Service and plausible solutions are also discussed in the article.