Service delivery improvement plans in South Africa: the good, the bad and the ugly

Service delivery remains a challenge even after 29 years of South Africa's democracy. The introduction of a Service Delivery Improvement Programme (SDIP) was motivated by the need to enhance service delivery across government. The article focuses on an implementation assessment of this SDIP. Qualitative and quantitative methods were used in the evaluation that targeted selected departments and officials. Four main categories of the assessment criteria used were relevance, effectiveness, efficiency, and sustainability. Most public officials were familiar with the SDIP legal framework and its ultimate goal of enhancing service delivery by assessing progress, finding gaps, and developing practical solutions. The assessment showed that most respondents agreed that the relevant policy, legal frameworks and SDIP policy guidelines are clear and coherent. The majority sentiment was that there is incoherence at implementation level, often leading to service-related public protests triggered by poor services. General agreement on the necessity and Significance of SDIPs existed, but there were concerns over their misalignment with strategic plans and annual performance plans, which affects their relevance, effectiveness and efficiency. Recommendations are that the SDIP template be made flexible to address the differential functions and deliverables of government departments separating those that deliver tangible services, from those that formulate and monitor policy implementation. An injection of additional training and business analysis skills into departments is essential to enhance the design, Implementation and reporting on SDIPs that consider the Office Management Framework, and the latest business processes and information technology.