Abstract

Public Sector reforms have been heralded as a panacea for enhanced service delivery and public sector efficiency and effectiveness. This study’s main objective is to analyse whether public sector reforms enhance public service delivery using the Malawi Public Service Charter reform initiative as a case study. The study is premised on the New Public Management, the Institutionalization and Public Value theories in explaining the role of reforms in enhancing public service delivery. The study used the mixed method approach where qualitative and quantitative methods were employed. Two district councils of Salima and Dedza were the prime study areas much as the study also involved selected central government ministries, departments and agencies. The focus was in the districts as it is through district councils that most frontline public services are delivered. The study further zeroed in on the education, agriculture and health sectors as these are the services that are frequently accessed by citizens. Acknowledging that the study was largely dealing with perceptions of citizens on public service delivery and the services they consume and use, the data collected was largely qualitative and thus collected through key informant face to face interviews, focus group discussions and supplemented with review of archive materials and web based literature. Some quantitative data through a questionnaire was also collected in the two study district councils. The hallmark of measuring enhanced public service delivery, the study argues, is attested through citizens’ satisfaction of the services they consume, thus the public value. Quality of standards is assessed using the SERVQUAL Model. The study finds that public sector reforms lead to enhanced service delivery only in the case where the reforms have been institutionalized. Institutionalization of reforms is critical if reforms are to achieve the required enhanced service delivery. The study also finds that customer service charter reform was introduced as a policy learning initiative, benefiting from inputs of policy entrepreneurs under the leadership of the Public Sector Reforms Management Unit within the Office of the President and Cabinet. The role interplay of key actors in the introduction process, the study further finds, is critical in facilitating the institutionalization process of reforms. In relation to accountability and transparency, citizen participation in setting service standards in the selected sectors prevails as a result of institutionalization of the reform through legislated and nonlegislated structures at the district and village levels. The study, therefore, concludes that public sector reforms lead to enhanced service delivery as a result of the institutionalization of the reforms.

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School	: School of Law, Economics and Government
Issued Date	: 2021

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