Times Of Swaziland: GOVERNMENT SET FOR MAJOR SHAKE-UP

GOVERNMENT SET FOR MAJOR SHAKE-UP
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BY SIBONGILE SUKATI on 14/02/2020 00:39:00


MBABANE – Government is set for a major shake-up. This is if the ambitious
National Development Plan (NDP) 2019/20 -2021/22 is fully implemented.
Among some of the things government wants to implement is the reintroduction of
early retirement schemes for civil servants.
The well articulated 131-page document also states that government intends to
review the pay structure of the public sector.
The early retirement schemes were once proposed about 10 years ago and were
known as the Early Voluntary Exist Retirement Scheme (EVERS) but for some
reason, it was not implemented. “Restructuring of ministries, departments and
agencies where efficiencies can be created and review organisational
structures,” is another key area which the plan is gunning for.
The NDP was tabled by the Minister of Economic Planning and Development, Dr
Thambo Gina, in Parliament on Wednesday.
Under Strategy 3, which is titled rebalance of expenditures and reduce size of
the wage bill, government further plans to review allowances and government
housing benefits. The NDP further states that government will remove all ghost
employees.
The plan has identified six national outcomes which are envisaged to be achieved
as a means to holistically develop Eswatini.
One of the key sectoral outcome targets is to ensure that the sum of the wage
bill and transfers is brought to under 50 per cent of total expenditures by
2021/22 from 58.5 per cent in 2018/19.
Development
The new national document states that the national outcomes were formulated
after an analysis of the developmental situation in the country, which is
characterised by an unprecedented fiscal crisis, as well as low human and social
development.
These were characterised by high unemployment and poverty rate, disastrous
impacts of climate change as well as weak public service delivery and governance
mechanism.
The first of the six national outcomes is good governance, economic recovery and
fiscal stability. The second national outcome is an enhanced dynamic private
sector supporting sustainable and inclusive growth, with the third being the
enhanced  social human and capital development.
They also include the enhanced efficient public service delivery that respects
human rights, justice and the rule of law and also a well-managed natural
resources and environmental sustainability.
The last of the expected national outcomes is the efficient economic
infrastructure network and according to the NDP, it will be achieved through a
number of sectoral outcomes or programmes and projects which are well
articulated.
parastatals
On the sectoral outcome of improved fiscal expenditure management, government,
under Strategy 4, also aims to review parastatals with an aim to decrease
subventions and increase dividends.
The intervention, according to the NDP, would be to have a comprehensive review
of all parastatals and to investigate the effectiveness and efficiency of
parastatals in achieving outcomes. “Merge parastatals with others or
ministries where appropriate,” reads the document.
Government also plans to investigate low current dividends being returned to
government from parastatals and further consider privatisation of some
commercial parastatals.