Kaizen improved citizen service delivery by leveraging the Palestinian Authority’s Centers of Excellence Program for sustainable, feedback-driven reforms in targeted ministries in the West Bank.
In the West Bank, there are several bottlenecks that impact public service delivery, including limited resources and capacity, bureaucratic inefficiencies, lack of coordination among government entities, and limited public trust in government institutions. Kaizen played a key role as a subcontractor to Development Alternatives International in supporting the USAID-funded Effective Governance Program (EGP) in the West Bank. Based on guidance from USAID, Kaizen built upon the existing Palestinian Authority (PA) Centers of Excellence (COE) Program implemented on the USAID-funded Palestinian Authority Capacity Enhancement (PACE) from 2008 to 2012. Under PACE, Kaizen personnel worked closely with national staff and PA ministry employees to launch and sustain an internally led assessment and reform planning program. This program led to reforms within the PA and supported structures to sustain them, with varying degrees of success.
Highlights
- Leveraged Centers of Excellence methodology to reform service delivery
- Documented and shared lessons learned
- Created sustainability mechanisms based on feedback loops
USAID acknowledged the need to build more effective and competent PA public institutions that are accountable to the public and respond to citizens’ needs. Its EGP engaged with ministry stakeholders to improve citizen service delivery, with Kaizen enhancing the project’s effectiveness. The company leveraged aspects of the COE methodology and principles to more effectively provide service delivery reform. Drawing on its experience implementing the COE methodology in several countries in the Middle East, Kaizen prepared a refined approach for integrating service delivery reforms in the PA ministries.
Kaizen helped build the PA COE program by analyzing performance gaps, documenting and sharing lessons learned, developing a strategic approach that adapts COE concepts, crafting messages to communicate to ministry personnel and leadership, creating sustainability mechanisms based on feedback loops, and providing strategic and technical guidance, reporting, adjustment, and surge support. Kaizen’s work supported the establishment and sustainability of citizen-centered, results-focused, feedback-driven reforms within targeted ministries to achieve the overall vision of citizen-based motivation to drive service improvement.
At a glance
Client
Status
Past
Location
West Bank
Services
Organizational development, governance