| dc.description.abstract | This study sought to establish the role played by communication in the on-going
reform programmes in the public sector and, particularly, in the Department of
Immigration in the Ministry of Immigration and Registration of Persons. In
particular, it has investigated the function of the service charter as a
communication tool both within the department and between the department
and users of its services.
To interrogate the above issues, the study focused on two populations, viz.
employees (service providers) and customers (service consumers). Up to 50
front-line staff, including immigration officers, immigration clerks and others in
the operational cadres, were selected through a simple random sampling
procedure. In addition, about 100 customers, sampled from members of the
public seeking services at the department's headquarters, formed part of the
sample for the other population. Further, an interview schedule, with one
senior official of the department, was conducted to obtain in-depth
information on the topic under investigation.
Both quantitative and qualitative methods were used to analyze the data
collected from the study. Quantitative data from the survey were analyzed
using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS).
Some of the key findings of the study were that a large majority of service
seekers at the department do not know about the existence of a service
cheater in the ministry. In contrast, all the service providers know the charter
exists and almost all know the promises it makes to the customers and
timelines therein. But a considerable number of the staff at the operational
cadre do not use the charter as a reference point for service delivery.
Similarly, only a handful of the customers use the charter to demand services.
Nearly all members of staff say they were not involved in the planning and
formulation processes of the service charter nor have they been trained on
implementations. The study concludes that the front line civil servants in the ministry are fully
conversant with the service charter's content; but because they were not
involved in its formulation majority of them do not use the charter as
reference point in service provision, neither has the charter has influenced
their behaviour and attitude in service provision. Further, because the
customers do not know the charter exist few of them use it to demand
services. The ministry values communication as crucial component in the public
service reform programmes. However the communications office feels it is
weak both in terms staffing level and position in the ministry's organisational
structure.
Consequently, the study recommends, among other things, that the
government formulate a comprehensive communication policy while ministries
and other government agencies should draw up clear communication strategy
thus mainstreaming communication as crucial component in the public sector
development programmes. | en |
