1
SURVEY OF THE TRAINING PROGRAMMES AND INSTITUTIONS FOR
LOCAL HUMAN RESOURCES IN GHANA
Joseph R.A. Ayee, Professor/Dean, Faculty of Social Studies, University of Ghana,
Legon
1.0 Introduction
Training in the public sector in Africa has become important because the public service is
expected by its customers and clients to provide value-for-money service. Public services
have been called upon to respond to greater demands of effectiveness and efficiency than
ever before. Stakeholders and users of the products of the public service have called for
greater emphasis on the institutional effectiveness, and specifically, on the enhancement
of training of public servants. This is grounded in the belief that the quality of services
rendered by the public service is directly influenced by the quality of staff in training
institutes and the pedagogical and curricula used. In essence, the quality of personnel of
the public service and its ability to provide value-for-money service strongly depend on
the strengths and excellence of staff in training institutes and a new approach to
pedagogical methods and curricula (Ayee, 2001).
Decentralization of human resource management (HRM) is to enable the DAs to make
staff locally accountable, allocate staff where need is greatest, manage its financial
resources, attract and retain skilled staff and build their own organizational capacity.
Ghana currently has 285,000 civil servants out of which 25% work at the local level. Of
the 25% personnel at the local level, 60% lack the requisite expertise to perform their
functions. This has become a thorny issue in the decentralization programme.
Consequently, capacity building institutions such as the Ghana Institute of Management
and Public Administration (GIMPA), Institute of Local Government Studies (ILGS) and
the Management Development Productivity Institute (MDPI) have been established to
train personnel for the decentralized bodies. Programmes being run by these institutions
include financial management, personnel administration, budgeting and accounting,
strategic planning, policy making and management, administrative law, etc.
Against this background, this paper examines the training programmes and institutions
set up in Ghana to build the capacity of local human resources. In doing so, the paper
discusses the following issues:
i.
ii.
iii.
iv.
v.
vi.
vii.
The evolution, aims and structure of the institutions;
The training programmes of the institutions;
The pedagogical methods used;
The profile of the teaching staff;
The profile of participants;
The impact of the training programmes;
The deficiencies of the training programmes; and
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viii.
Recommendations to address the deficiencies
Before we deal with these issues, it will pertinent for us to define training and shed some
light on the methodology used to collect data for the paper.
2.0 Training
According to Mintzberg (1979), training refers to the systematic development of the
knowledge, attitudes and skills of an employee. It is generally concerned with the
acquisition of knowledge, skills and competencies to ensure an effective and efficient
performance of the employee. It is expected to meet a range of objectives, notably, skills
development, upgrading and socialization into the ethos of either the public or private
service. Being a development process, training is sequential; each part of a training
programme should be inextricably linked, dependent on or influential to the other (Dotse,
1991). Notwithstanding this, training in most African countries is treated as a discrete
event, not part of an overall programme of organizational development (Paul, 1983).
Consequently, there are few training policies and programmes that will lay down the
principle of mandatory training and re-training of staff.
3.0 Methodology
We selected for study three leading institutions that train middle and high-level human
resources in Ghana. They are the Ghana Institute of Management and Public
Administration (GIMPA), the Institute of Local Government Studies (ILGS) and the
Management Development and Productivity Institute (MDPI). They have the pedigree for
training personnel for both public and private institutions. In addition, two of them,
GIMPA and the MDPI were established in 1961 and 1967 respectively. Therefore in
terms of longevity and experience in training human resources GIMPA and MDPI
become veritable laboratories for investigation. For comparative purposes, we also
decided to select the ILGS because of all the three institutions, it is the youngest, having
been established in 1999. With this selection it will be possible to compare the training
programmes, pedagogy and staff quality of both the old and new institutions and their
impact on human resources training.
A survey of the three institutions was conducted between August and November 2006.
We interviewed twelve (12) officials comprising heads and lecturers of the institutions
and twenty (20) participants who attended the training programmes of the institutions. In
addition to the interviews, we consulted various documents such as annual reports,
handbooks containing the training programmes and courses offered by the institutions
and legislation that created the institutions.
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4.0 The evolution, objectives and structure of the institutions
This section is devoted to highlighting the historical evolution, objectives and structure of
the three institutions, namely, (i) The Ghana Institute of Management and Public
Administration (GIMPA); (b) the Management Development and Productivity Institute
(MDPI); and (c) the Institute of Local Government Studies (ILGS).
4.1 The Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration (GIMPA)
The Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration (GIMPA) was established
in 1961as a joint Ghana Government and United Nations Special Fund Project. It was
originally the Institute of Public Administration and was entrusted, among other functions,
with the responsibility of training new entrants into the administrative class and
analogous grades of the civil service. This responsibility has, however, slightly changed
given its new status as a non-subvented institution, which no longer depends on
government subvention to pay staff and finance its activities. We will return to this later
when we look at its objectives and functions. In 1966, the joint sponsorship ended and the
UN formally handed over the Institute to the Government of Ghana. The Institute is redesignated the Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration in 1969 to
reflect its enlarged focus of developing the public administrative system and producing
civil servants with administrative and professional competence to plan and administer
national, regional and local services ((GIMPA, 2003).
Vision
Its vision is to be a world class centre of excellence for training, consultancy and research
in leadership, business management and public administration, using top class and
motivated staff with state-of-the-art facilities (GIMPA 2005: 1).
Mission
Its mission is to maintain a Centre of Excellence for training in public and business
administration, by continuously enhancing the capability of middle and top level
executives in public and private sectors, as well as Non-Governmental Organizations
(NGOs) both in Ghana and internationally to manage their institutions and enterprises
efficiently and effectively. Its overall goal therefore is to become the best Management
Development Institute in sub-Saharan Africa, known for quality programme delivery in
Leadership, Management and Administration (GIMPA, 2005: 2).
Objectives and functions
According to the GIMPA Act, Act 676, 2004 the main objective of GIMPA is to “train
public servants of Ghana and to provide education, training and services in the fields of
leadership, management and public administration for the public sector, private sector
and non-governmental organizations”. To achieve this objective, the Institute is enjoined
to perform the following functions: (a) promote education, training and services in the
fields of leadership, business management and administration; (b) provide professional,
unbiased and dedicated advisory support services to various areas of Government to
enhance their capacity for sustainable development; (c) promote the development of
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managerial skills for the persons employed in the public and private sectors and nongovernmental organizations and create awareness of the need for education, training and
the provision of services in the fields of leadership, management and administration as a
necessary requirement for maintaining the vitality of organizations in the development of
the economy; (d) promote the use of information technology as an essential tool to
increase competitive advantage, and enhance output for national development; (e) assist
Ghanaian enterprises through cost effective education, training and the provision of
services, research and consultancy to achieve efficient management, increase productivity
and effective cost control; (f) promote understanding and co-operation between public
and private sector institutions in respect of public administration and management
obligations; and (g) offer courses leading to the award of certificates, diplomas and
degrees in the Institute’s area of competence subject to such conditions as the authorities
responsible for tertiary education in the country shall direct (Republic of Ghana, 2004).
Governance structure
The main governance structure, which is responsible for policy making and appointment
of key staff, is the Council. It consists of 11 members, three of whom appointed by the
government with as chairman. Other members who are ex-officio are the chairperson of
the Public Services Commission, the Head of the Civil Service, the Executive Secretary
of the National Council on Tertiary Education, the Executive Chairman of the State
Enterprises Commission and the Rector of the Institute. There is one representative each
from some of the publics of GIMPA, namely, the Association of Ghana Industries, the
Alumni Association and Senior Member of staff.
Below the Council is a Management Board and an Academic Board. The Management
Board is chaired by the Rector and consists of all Deans and Senior Management. It is
responsible for day-to-day management of the Institute. The Academic Board, which is
responsible for academic issues, is also chaired by the Rector.
4.2 The Management Development and Productivity Institute (MDPI)
The Management Development and Productivity Institute (MDPI) was established in
October 1967 under a joint Ghana Government, United Nations Development
Programme (UNDP) and International Labour Organization (ILO) Project. The MDPI
replaced its forerunner, the National Productivity Centre (NPC) which had been
established in June 1964 by the Kwame Nkrumah’s Convention People’s Party (CPP)
government as part of the then National Planning Commission. It was incorporated as a
parastatal by Legislative Instrument (LI) 1077 of July 1976. The Institute was formally
handed over to the Ghana Government by the UNDP and ILO in 1977 when the joint
sponsorship ended (MDPI, 2006).
Vision
Its vision is to be a market leader in productivity improvement strategies development
and the promotion of best management practices.
Mission
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Its mission is to promote increased productivity in both public and private organizations
in Ghana to enable them contribute to the growth of the economy on a sustainable basis.
Objectives and functions
The MDPI has three objectives. They are (i) to embark upon practical aspects of training
and problem solving with a view to building up managerial capacity and promoting
increased productivity; (ii) to offer consultancy services to improve organizational
efficiency and effectiveness; and (iii) to conduct macro and micro economic studies,
enquiries and research to determine suitable management techniques and practices to
improve and develop the standard of management in all aspects (Republic of Ghana,
1976).
To achieve these objectives, the MDPI organizes management training programmes,
conferences, workshops and seminars for personnel from all sectors of industry and
commerce in various fields, including general management, financial management,
industrial engineering, project management, marketing management, transport
management, small-scale enterprises management, construction business management
and ICT applications (MDPI, 2006).
Governance structure
The MDPI has a Board of Governors as the policy making body and a directorate which
is in charge of day-to-day administration.
Unlike GIMPA, the Institute has a regional office at Kumasi, the second largest city in
Ghana. It offers regular, in-plant and project related management training programmes
for client organizations in the northern sector of the country – Ashanti, Brong Ahafo,
Northern, Upper East and Upper West regions.
4.3 The Institute of Local Government Studies (ILGS)
The Institute of Local Government Studies (ILGS) came into being in 1999 as a project
of the Ministry of Local Government as part of an effort by the Government of Ghana to
equip the local government system to play a pivotal role in development. With some
assistance from the World Bank and the Royal Netherlands Government, structures,
equipment, literature and technical assistance, training and education activities started the
same year. It was not until 2003 that the ILGS was formally set up by an Act of
Parliament, Act 647 as a public training and development institution.
Vision
Its vision is to build capacity for local governance
Mission
Its mission is to build the capacity of local governance through enhancing internal publics,
re-orient staff, build esprit the corps and sharpen capacity and client responsiveness.
Objectives and functions
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According to Act 647, the objectives of the Institute are to organize training of members
of the Regional Coordinating Councils, District Assemblies, staff and personnel in the
local government and related sectors and any other person or body, local or foreign
interested in governance, to enhance the managerial, administrative, financial and
operational efficiency of organs and units of local government.
To achieve these objectives, the Institute’s functions include the following: (a) arrange
courses, workshops, seminars and conferences for persons engaged in areas of local
government; (b) prescribe the qualification of persons eligible for training at the Institute;
(c) undertake and promote research in local government; (d) develop training materials
for members of the Regional Coordinating Councils, District Assemblies, and other local
government units; (e) publish literature relevant to local government; and (f) develop
specialized libraries for purposes of local government (Republic of Ghana, 2003).
Governance structure
The Council is the governing body of the Institute. It consists of 11 members made up of
a chairperson and three persons who are appointed by the President in consultation with
the Council of State. In addition to these four government appointees, there are ex-officio
members. They are the Director of the Institute, one representative of the Ministry of
Local Government, not below the rank of Director and one person not below the rank of a
Director in the Public Services representing the National Development Planning
Commission, the National Association of Local Government Authorities of Ghana, the
Public Services Commission, the Local Government Service and the National Council on
Tertiary Education.
Like the MDPI, the ILGS has a campus in Tamale, Northern Region, which is to
complement the activities of the Accra campus. It is also charged with building capacity
of local government functionaries and other decentralized department in the northern
sector of the country as well as collaborating with other agencies like non-governmental
organizations, civil society organizations and with a bid to expand the frontiers of the
local government system (ILGS, 2003)
4.4 General Comments on the vision, mission and governance structure of the
institutions
A number of observations can be made from the vision, mission and governance structure
of the three institutions. First, they all began as a project between the Ghana Government
and one of the constitutive bodies of the United Nations in respond to fill a void in the
development of local human resources in the public sector especially, even though there
is room for accommodation of the private sector. Their primary objective is to improve
the caliber of personnel available for employment in the public services and, to some
extent, the private sector. Specifically, they are established to perform the following
functions: (a) to promote the study of public administration, management and leadership;
(b) to institute programmes and provide facilities for the education and training of
personnel taking up a career in the public and private sectors; (c) research into problems
of management and administration; (d) provide management consultancy services; and
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(e) encourage or sponsor the publication of the results of studies or of research into
management and administration. Second, all of them have a governing body some of
whose members including the chairperson are appointed by the government. This
therefore is likely to lend to government interference in the affairs of the institutes. Third,
they award certificates, diplomas and higher qualifications as may be agreed by the
institutes and approved by the National Accreditation Board.
5.0 The training programmes of the institutions
Generally, the three institutions offer four categories of training programmes, namely, (a)
induction courses; (b) core or career progression programmes; (c) Functional
programmes; (d) in-plant programmes. The induction courses are mounted for candidates
or trainee public servants or politicians or local government officials before they enter the
public services. Induction courses are mainly functional rather than theoretical. It focuses
on administrative personnel management, budgetary problems, economic issues relating
to ongoing government programmes and management science. These are supplemented
with organization of seminars, internships in the public service, group discussions and
part-time work experiences. The duration of the induction courses ranges between one
week to two weeks.
Core or career progression programmes are designed to give specific foundation skills for
individuals to start a career in an organization and be able to advance in the
organization’s hierarchy. Participants are acquainted with new governance skills and
techniques, developing professional capacities and a sense of responsibility, mastering
the decision-making process and preparing internal promotion exercises. It is carried out
through lectures, seminars and retraining. The duration of the programmes is between
two weeks to 25 weeks, which will lead to the award of either a certificate or diploma in
GIMPA. However, if one is undertaking an undergraduate or a graduate degree at
GIMPA, the participant is likely to spend between one to four years.
Functional programmes are designed to equip participants with specific skills for
performance of specific functions. Such courses, which can be attended at point in one’s
career, are aimed at developing expertise for carrying out specific tasks. Functional
courses are organized, for example, for senior armed forces and police officers, heads of
second cycle institutions, managers of parastatals, and officials of government ministries,
departments and agencies.
In-plant courses are those specific tailor-made ones, seminars and workshops, which are
run to address specific problems of a particular organization. An example of this is
GIMPA’s “Women-in-Management” workshop or ILGS’ course on “Contract
Management, Monitoring and Accounting” for contractors, work superintendents,
accounting officers, district works supervisors at the District Assemblies and driving
skills for District Assembly drivers.
The training programmes of the three institutions are demand-driven, tailored to the
needs of the various institutions both in the public and private sectors. They are
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advertised in the local dailies to enable qualified candidates to apply. Academic and noacademic training programmes are organized by only GIMPA, which is a tertiary degree
awarding institution that offers undergraduate and graduate programmes in management,
public administration, business administration, organize governance and leadership. It
awards diplomas, certificates, first and second degrees. The specific programmes are as
follows:
•
Master Degree Programme in:
o Business Administration
o Public Administration
o Governance and Leadership
o Development Management
•
Postgraduate and Diploma in
o Business Administration
o Public Administration
o Governance and Leadership
o Urban Management
o Agriculture Management
•
•
•
Undergraduate Programmes
Certificate and Diploma Courses
Competency-based Short Courses
GIMPA’s most popular programmes are the:
•
Certificate in Administration and Management. This has created opportunity for
people in society who could not make good grades in their General Certificate in
Education “O” and “A” Levels to acquire the necessary qualification/knowledge
to pursue university degree courses
•
The Higher National Diploma (HND) Top Up programme, which has filled a
vacuum in post-polytechnic education in Ghana by introducing a 15-month topup programme for polytechnic graduates in the areas of administration, business
and entrepreneurship.
The ILGS and MDPI, on the other hand, organize training courses for public and private
sector organizations and the participants receive certificates of attendance. The courses
run by the ILGS are:
• District Development planning and management
• Public Private Partnership for Local Level Development
• Information management for Local Level Development
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•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Good Governance in Local Development
Natural Recourses and Environmental management
Gender, Equity and Local Government
Leadership management and supervision in Local Government
Financial management, Budgeting and Accounting
Local Level Economic Development
Human Resources Management in Local Government
Local Government Administration
Orientation programmes for District Assembly Functionaries
Geographic Information System
The MDPI, on the other hand, offers General Management, Marketing Management,
Financial and Management Information System and Industrial Engineering and
Productivity.
Overall, the training programmes of the institutes show that they focus on the
interdisciplinary nature of public administration and management, drawing on
psychology, political science, economics, sociology, law, anthropology and management
science to enable participants. This approach must be understood against the backdrop of
the realization that public and private administrators require a body of general knowledge,
which would help them in distinguishing a good policy from a bad one (Ayee, 2001). The
objective is to train participants to develop the capability to think clearly on how the
performance of their own duties relates to the specific functions of other government
institutions and agencies and the entire government (Dotse, 1991).
The training programmes of GIMPA and MDPI have attracted participants from other
African countries. For instance, GIMPA’s Public Sector Management in Africa
programme, the only one in sub-Saharan Africa, which was started in 2006 have attracted
public servants from across the continent. Similarly, the MDPI continues to attract
participants from The Gambia, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Togo and Benin. It has conducted
tailor-made, customized or in-plant training courses in the Gambia for the Gambia
Telecommunication Company and the Gambia Cellular Phone with success (MDPI,
2006).
6.0 The pedagogical methods used
A combination of a variety of pedagogical methods has been employed by the three
institutions in the delivery of their training programmes. They include lectures, syndicate
and seminar discussions, group project assignments, role-playing simulation, assigned
reading and class presentations, written assignments, case studies, visual and audio-visual
aids and tutorials. The use of visual and audio-visual aids is to make the courses more
interactive and practical. Generally, emphasis is placed on adult learning techniques,
which emphasize the discovery and experiential methods (Ayee, 2001).
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Other pedagogical approaches include (i) field trips – outside visits to examine at first
hand management problems under study; (ii) use of guest speakers (formalized
practitioners’ for a), whereby top practicing officials speak to trainees on the organization,
functions, policies, plans, methods and special problems of their respective organizations
or institutions.
The use of case studies in the training programmes is important for three reasons. First,
they make the participants active and not passive receptacles, and therefore the lessons
are more interesting. Secondly, they emphasize the political nature of public policy
making and the forms of rationality. Thirdly, they facilitate the process of learning by
discovery.
Most of the programmes are non-residential partly to allow the participants to practice
what they have learnt at their work-places while attending the lectures and partly due to
logistical problems such as inadequate accommodation in the campuses of the three
institutions.
7.0 The profile of the teaching staff
Compared to the other two training institutions, GIMPA’s staff strength is about three
times the size of the other two institutions put together. It has a staff strength of 312 made
up of 83 Faculty and Senior Staff (12 of whom belong to the Executive Management
Board), 75 Middle Level Staff and 154 Junior Staff. The MDPI has a staff strength of 15,
13 of them designated as consultants. The ILGS, on the other hand, has only three fulltime staff. Consequently, it depends on part-time lecturers from the University of Ghana,
GIMPA and practitioners whose expertise and practical experience are needed.
Some of the teaching staff hold either post-graduate qualifications in public
administration, management or allied fields and have also had previous experience in the
public service. In addition, the efforts of the regular faculty are augmented by several
part-time lecturers from the universities and instructors (adjunct lecturers) drawn from
the upper levels of the public service, state-owned enterprises and the private sector.
The education background of the teaching staff reveals that they are not interested in
asking their staff to pursue doctoral programmes in their various disciplines. Overall, less
than 30% of staff of the three institutes have a PhD in their areas of specialization. The
MDPI does not have a staff with a PhD while the ILGS has one PhD holder. GIMPA,
however, has 10 PhD holders out of 83 faculty. Nine faculty members are also at the time
of writing this study PhD programmes. The argument is that holding a PhD is not a
necessary or sufficient condition for getting a job at the training institutes. The low rate of
PhD holders is also attributed to the diverse skills and expertise needed by the training
institutes. Consequently, professionals like accountants, lawyers and information
technologists will not feel obligated to have doctoral degrees before joining the institutes.
The profiles of the academic staff of the training institute reveal that they have overconcentrated on teaching and consultancy services to the detriment of research and
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publications. This is not healthy given that one of the remit of the institutes is to research
into issues and problems of management and public administration and publish and
disseminate the findings.
The academic staff of the three institutions seems to be over-aged. Eighty percent of
academic staff of the three institutes are 55 and above while 15% belong to 45-55 age
category. The rest are below 45. This trend is disturbing and is attributable to an outdated
requirement especially in GIMPA and MDPI that teaching staff should have previous
experience in the public service before appointment. This has made it impossible for most
of the staff to “reproduce” themselves.
8.0 The profile of participants
A profile of the participants of the three training institutes shows that over 90% of them
are employees of the public services, such as civil servants, local government councillors,
officials, politicians and administrators. Of the 90% only 26% have university degrees.
The rest are non-degree holders. The 10% come from the private sector such as
employees of non-governmental organizations and civil society organizations. The
majority of non-degree holders in the programmes is not surprising given that the
institutions are mainly concerned with improving the skills and competencies of lower
and middle level personnel and organizing induction, tailor-measured refresher courses
for politicians and staff of the public services, which are not necessarily academic.
Tables 1, 2 and 3 show the number of participants who had benefited from the
programmes of the three institutes between 2000 and 2005. The number of participants of
the ILGS is higher that of GIMPA and the MDPI largely because it delivers training to
the large target group of actors (such as DA members of the 138 districts, DA
administrative staff and contractors) in local government. Each District Assembly (DA),
that is, local government unit expected to be impacted upon in one way or another by the
ILGS. In addition, the ILGS does not offer regular academic programmes unlike GIMPA
and the MDPI.
From 2000-2005, the three institutes put together have trained 22,784 personnel, over
60% of which work with the District Assemblies (DAs). Even though the number seems
large it is still inadequate for the large number of people who work in the public services.
Table 1: GIMPA’s Participants, 2000-2005
Year
2005
2004
2003
2002
2001
2000
Regular courses
515
481
420
410
398
389
In-plant courses
92
84
86
89
77
76
Project related courses
528
497
489
466
420
410
Total
1135
1062
995
965
895
875
12
Total 2613
Source: GIMPA, 2006
504
2810
5927
Table 2: MDPI’s Participants, 2000-2005
Year Regular courses
2005*
2004
2003
2002
2001
2000
Total
520
571
610
697
627
534
3559
In-plant courses
320
723
385
490
524
735
3177
Project related courses
3
325
284
16
628
Total
840
1297
1320
1471
1157
1285
7370
*As at October 2005
Every year a considerable number of supervisors and management personnel attended
the regular courses as published in the management training programme (MTP). The
beneficiaries of these courses come from both public and private sector organizations.
Source: MDPI, 2006
Table 3: ILGS’ Participants, 2000-2005
Year Regular courses
2005
2004
2003
2002
2001
2000
Total
-
In-plant courses
1104
1890
1000
2456
589
300
7339
Project related courses
973
135
619
90
89
242
2148
Total
2077
2025
1619
2546
678
542
9487
Source: ILGS, 2006
9.0 The impact of the training programmes
Interviews with ten randomly selected participants of the training programmes of the
three institutes show that the programmes had facilitated their work through enhancement
of their knowledge, competencies and skills because they understood the issues and their
implications better than when they did not undertake the programmes. Some even were
assigned more challenging jobs after graduation. Because of the importance and
relevance of the programmes and their impact on human resource development and
policy formulation, management and evaluation, the ministries and other government
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departments have been clamouring to send their staff to undertake the programmes. This
said however, the impact of the participants on public policy making and local
governance is difficult to judge given the fact that one was not able to go round all of the
beneficiaries and individually assess their competencies vis-à-vis their work schedule and
may therefore need another study.
This notwithstanding, even though the institutions have trained personnel, there is still a
dearth of expertise at the local level. The Ghana Poverty Reduction Strategy (Ghana
2003: 8) recognizes that the “weak capacity of local government institutions pose a great
challenge to the effective implementation of the GPRS”. Some of the factors contributing
to this are (a) the ad-hoc and piecemeal nature of the training, the lack of financial
resources to motivate staff in the training institute themselves and the loss of institutional
memory on the part of the decentralized units as a result of local government elections.
Other challenges facing local government human resource management (HRM) issues are
as follows:
• Lack of integrated system for local HRM as a result of different lines of authority for
•
•
•
•
•
•
different categories, core Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs)
staff reporting to the District Coordinating Director, who is appointed by the Head of
the Civil Service;
Centralization of recruitment, promotion and discipline of staff in the MMDAs.
Consequently, staff have very limited accountability towards MMDAs;
Staff are transferred by the central government and therefore limits local efforts for
capacity building;
Difficulty in attracting and retaining staff in some districts;
MMDAs are largely without control over the size and structure of their establishment
since there is no incentive for rationalization; and
Weak procedures for staff discipline;
Fragmentation of current capacity building, project-based, uncoordinated, not locally
led, with no clear performance targets nor incentives (Joint GOG and DP Workshop
2007).
At the level of the civil service, the training programmes have been acknowledged to be
inadequate. Indeed, it has been pointed out that a key part of the underlying problem
within the civil service is the the lack of institutional capacity. In the words of Ministry of
Public Sector Reform Reference Document (2006: 25):
Unfortunately, over the last decade or more, precious little has been done to provide
training within the civil service to develop and safeguard institutional capacity. This has
been due partly to budgetary constraints and the lack of a comprehensive training plan
encompassing the required competencies of the service. This should be institutionalized
to ensure development of a high calibre and professional staff.
To address the problem, the Document categorizes the training and educational needs of
the civil and local government services into four components as follows:
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(a) Immediate critical needs to be met by an accelerated training programmed
especially for the leadership of the civil service and local government service;
(b) SoS training linked to career progression. This will cover generic as well as
sector/industry specific knowledge and skills;
(c) Continuous education to keep with developments; and
(d) New entrants should train specifically in public service administration before
entering the civil and local government service.
Consequently, the objective of the Ministry of Public Sector Reform is to ensure that all
public personnel at various levels of their progression undergo relevant training and that
training remains continuous. The outputs and activities of the objective are contained in
Box 1.
Box 1: Outputs and activities of the Objectives of the Training and Education Programme of the
Ministry of Public Sector Reform, 2006-2010
i. Optimal staff must be undertaken, using the current organizational structures: a programme must to
appropriately staff the Ministries/Departments/Agencies.
ii. Adoption of an accelerated training programme for the public service using the outline for the top level
staff as proposed.
iii. Urgent need to re-institute a SoS training for all levels of staff of the civil and local government
services.
iv. The use of education and training to professionalize the public service.
v. Cessation of transfer of public servants who have been specially trained for specific jobs in particular
sectors.
vi. Installation of a Management Information System that can track the development and utilization of
personnel.
vii. Refurbishment and modernization of Government Secretarial Schools and Civil Service Training
Schools.
Source: Republic of Ghana, Ministry of Public Sector Reform, Work Programme to Coordinate the
Implementation of Public Sector Reforms, Reference Document, January 2006: p. 41.
10.0 The deficiencies of the training programmes
A number of deficiencies of the training programmes have been pointed out by some of
the participants. First, they complain of the courses being academic and not practical and
problem-solving. In addition to this, the mode of delivery is not interactive enough. Most
of the programmes are still delivered as lectures and seminars with little or no visual or
audio-visual aids techniques. Two of the former participants indicated that if one is
teaching Max Weber’s model of rational authority, it will facilitate the learning skills of
the participants if a video on Max Weber and the environment under which he wrote
could be screened while the lecture is going on. Secondly, they complained about the
short duration of internship or place programme, which is between two to four weeks.
Furthermore, some cannot find institutions to support their internships. Third, the
curriculum content of the institutes does not show concern for and sensitivity to
environmental management. This is a serious oversight that must be addressed because of
the crucial role environment issues have assumed in Ghana and other sub-Saharan
15
African countries. Administrative aspects of environmental concern must not be far lessw
established but be present in the curricula of the training institutes. Fourthly, the available
literature used by the institutes is heavily slanted towards issues and problems of the
Western world. There is generally paucity of material in public administration, public
policy analysis and management relevant to the specific needs of Ghana and other
African countries. Even though there are some publications in public policy,
administration, leadership and management in Ghana, they have remained inadequate in
augmenting the various courses offered by the training institutes.
11.0 Problems facing the institutions
Three main problems face the institutions. They are finance, personnel and lack of
government commitment. The problem of limited funding has been emphasized by the
directors of the ILGS and MDPI. The director-general of GIMPA did not complain about
inadequate funding because it charges full-fees for its training and academic programmes.
GIMPA is no longer a subvented organization unlike the ILGS and the MDPI which
continue to receive quarterly government subvention. Given the disparity between its
financial resources and demands, the two institutes have introduced fees for their training
programmes since 2005. Consequently, the government subvention accounts for 40% of
the revenues of the two institutes while 60% come from internally generated sources. In
addition to these, the two institutes receive grants from donors and the National
Association of Local Governments (NALAG) for the skills-based programmes for the
training and education activities particularly in the training of District Coordinating
Directors, Presiding Members of the District Assemblies and women District Assembly
members.
It is, however, difficult to get the real financial positions of the three institutes because
their directors were not willing to disclose them, which is not a new in Ghana.
Apart from financial problems, ageing and inadequate faculty has been common to all the
institutes vis-à-vis the large student numbers. As earlier on indicated under “profile of the
teaching staff” the teaching staff of the three institutes are aging. The problem is
compounded by the disparity between the staff and student numbers. For instance, the
ILGS has only three permanent staff and therefore had to resort to practitioners and
academics outside to mount its programmes. GIMPA and MDPI also face staffing
problems and have also extended invitation to staff outside their institutions to enable
them to mount certain programmes.
Finally, successive governments lack commitment to the training institutes. This is
evidenced by the lack of a systematic approach to human resource development and an
absence of a well coordinated and defined training policy in policy development, analysis
and management. In interviews conducted with the heads of the three institutes, it is clear
that issues and challenges such as staffing and funding facing them were not either
promptly addressed or were not considered.
12.0 Conclusion: recommendations
16
The need to promote excellence in public service delivery is central to the building of a
culture of quality management and productivity improvement in the public service.
Achieving excellence in public service delivery, of course, requires creativity and
innovation. These cannot be achieved without education and training of staff in the public
sector and, to some extent, the private sector. In this connection, training and education of
public servants will be enhanced in the training institutes in Ghana if the following can be
taken into consideration:
i.
ii.
iii.
iv.
v.
vi.
Institutionalize the preparation and evaluation of training plans;
Strengthen the human resources and system of logistical support for the
institutes through more government commitment and will;
Create poles of excellence. Instead of each institute trying to provide all the
training programmes, institutes could specialize in certain specific areas of
training.
Professionalize the curricula through more practical and modern techniques of
teaching and training.
Pedagogy should be made more interactive, problems-solving and policy
analysis-oriented, which should encourage innovation.
Training programmes must be made more tailor-measured to match the real
needs of participants and institutions.
REFERENCES
Ayee, Joseph (2001) “Renovated Pedagogical Methods and Curricula in the Training
Institutes of Public Administration in Africa”, in United Nations Economic and Social
17
Affairs (ed.) African Institutes of Public Administration: New Challenges, New Role, New
Perspectives ( New York: United Nations and CAFRAD): 80-91.
Dotse, Mawuena (1991) “The State of Training in Public Policy Management in Ghana”,
Public Administration and Management, Vol. 11: 525-539.
Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration (2005) GIMPA Profile,
October 2005.
Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration (2003) Annual Report,
2003/2004-2004-2005.
Ghana, Republic of (1976) Legislative Instrument (LI) 1077 (Tema: Ghana Publishing
Corporation).
Ghana, Republic of (2003) The Institute of Local Government Studies Act, Act 647
(Accra: Government Printer, Assembly Press).
Ghana, Republic of (2004) Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration
Act, Act 676 (Accra: Government Printer, Assembly Press).
Ghana, Republic of (2003) Ghana Poverty Reduction Strategy, 2003-2005: An Agenda
for Growth and Prosperity – Analysis and Policy Statement. Vol. 1 February. National
Development Planning Commission, Accra.
Ghana, Republic of (2003) Local Government Service Act (Act 656). Government
Printer, Accra.
Ghana, Republic of (2005) Growth and Poverty Reduction Strategy, Vol. 1, Policy
Framework. National Development Planning Commission, Accra.
Ghana, Republic of (2006) Ministry of Public Sector Reform Work Programme to
Coordinate the Implementation of Public Sector Reforms: Reference Document, Accra,
January.
Ghana, Republic of (2006a) Ministry of Public Sector Reform: Work Programme to
Coordinate the Implementation of Public Sector Reforms: A Brief Outline. January.
Ghana, Republic of (2006b) Ministry of Public Sector Reform: Work Programme to
Coordinate the Implementation of Public Sector Reforms: Reference Document, January.
Institute of Local Government Studies (2003) Annual Report 2003.
Joint Government of Ghana (GOG and Development Partners (DP) Decentralization
Policy Review Workshop held at Elmina, Cape Coast, Ghana in January 2007.
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Management Development and Productivity Institute (2006) 2006 Management Training
Programme.
Mintzberg, H. (1979) The Structuring of Organizations (Prentice Hall: Englewood Cliffs).
Paul, S. (1983) Training for Public Administration and Management in Developing
Countries: A Review (World Bank Staff Working Paper).
QUESTIONNAIRE FOR OFFICIALS OF INSTITUTES
1.
2.
3.
4.
When was the institution created?
Do you like your organizational chart? If yes, how?
List courses and programmes undertaken
What is the nature of the programmes?
Demand driven
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5. Were there any changes in programme?
6. If yes, why were they changes made?
7. How many participants were trained since the establishment of the institution?
8. Which of the programme(s) is (are) more popular, and why?
9. Where can we locate the people who were trained from the institute?
10. Sources of funding for the establishment: (a) indicate percentage of internally
generated funding; (b) indicate percentage of external sources of funding
11. Problems and challenges
QUESTIONNAIRE FOR PARTICIPANTS/BENEFICIARIES
1. When did you enter the institution?
2. What was your educational level?
3. Why did you apply for the institution?
4. What did you apply to do?
5. What skills, competencies and knowledge did you acquire?
6. Did they help you at your work place?
7. What courses did you enjoy?
8. What courses did you hate?
9. What challenges did you face?
10. What recommendations will you make to improve the training programmes of the
institute you attended?