ZIMBABWE
The Zimbabwe Public Service Commission (PSC) has announced it is examining the roles, functions and mandates of all Ministries and Departments as part of a process to come up with a new structure for the Public Service.
Secretary to the PSC, Jonathan Wutawunashe (pictured) said the aim was to create a leaner and more effective Public Service capable of delivering on President, Emmerson Mnangagwa’s vision of an upper middle-class economy by 2030.
“Rationalisation will involve eliminating duplication of roles, abolition of vacant and non-essential posts, redeployment of redundant workers, optimisation of Departmental functions and retirement of eligible staff,” Mr Wutawunashe said.
“Posts for clerks, executive officers, typists, data capturers and dark room assistants will be abolished.”
He said these were no longer relevant to the modern Public Service.
Mr Wutawunashe said the new structure that would emerge would determine the number of PS staff on the payroll.
“Where appropriate, the Commission will redeploy, reskill, multi-skill, reassign and capacitate some of the affected staff members, but redundant positions will be abolished,” he said.
“Members occupying abolished posts are encouraged to advance their skills and, on attainment of higher and professional skills, will be regraded.”
In his weekly newspaper column, President Mnangagwa said the Government would use a biometric register to eliminate ghost workers.
“A time-lined raft of measures on that front will be announced soon, including an exercise in developing a biometric register of all Civil Servants on the Government payroll, which should eliminate leakages through ghost workers,” Mr Mnangagwa said.
Meanwhile, Secretary for Finance and Economic Development, George Guvamatanga told Parliament that in the 2019 and 2020 Budgets, the Public Service wage bill would be cut by A$275 million and A$179 million, respectively.
There are more than 158,900 PS staff on the Government’s payroll, with about 123,000 employed by the Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education.
Harare, 5 November 2018
