Partner Ministries Begin Implementation of Transformation Action Plans
In preparation for the second annual Centers of Government Excellence conference held in Jericho on October 31, 2010, partner ministries completed a self-assessment of their current operations as part of the USAID Palestinian Authority Capacity Enhancement (PACE) project. Kaizen, as a subcontractor to Chemonics, has been implementing the Centers of Excellence (COE) approach on PACE since November 2008. Beginning in November 2010, each ministry began producing a comprehensive first wave of transformation action plans that address areas for improvement based on ministry needs identified in their self-assessments. As the PACE project moves into its final year, these action plans are serving as the foundation for improving overall ministry operations, leading to better and more efficient government services for Palestinian citizens.
Creating each action plan was a highly collaborative process between PACE staff and partner ministries. PACE staff worked closely with teams in partner ministries to develop a coherent vision for each action plan and to select and prioritize specific areas for improvement. Prioritization was based on the impact each improvement would have on government service delivery as well as the level of difficulty of implementing each proposed solution. As of March 2011, every partner ministry had begun taking concrete steps towards achieving at least three major initiatives articulated in their action plan.
The Ministry of Interior (MOI) is just one example of a partner ministry that has made great strides in action plan implementation. The MOI outlined several major initiatives within its action plan that will help make it more efficient, including building management skills, developing an internal and external communications plan and increasing the capacity of human resources leadership, among others. So far, in pursuit of these initiatives, MOI staff has participated in a cross-ministry workshop to begin building management skills, begun implementation of a communications plan developed with the help of PACE consultants, and reviewed appraisal and incentive systems to improve employee performance. Ministry staff is continuously developing innovative ways to meet the terms of their action plans and have welcomed the expertise and assistance of PACE staff in doing so. Similarly to the MOI, PACE’s other partner ministries are also working towards their diverse goals on a daily basis.
PACE staff is working to build structures that will ensure that a culture of excellence and ongoing self-improvement remains strong within each ministry even after the project ends in July 2011. PACE staff has focused on developing internal sustainability by creating and nurturing high-caliber teams within each ministry that will be responsible for leading the COE approach after the project closes. In addition, a national steering committee composed of representatives from each partner ministry has been developed to ensure that COE will persist into the future, not just on a ministry level, but also on a government-wide basis.
