AMDIN to Push for Africa’s Development
BuaNews (Tshwane)
NEWS
3 September 2007
Posted to the web 3 September 2007
By Themba Gadebe
Midrand
The African Management Development Institutes Network (AMDIN) conference has pushed for the development of Africa’s public sector capacity.
“The conference reiterated the importance of MDIs (Management Development Institutes) in assisting with developing appropriate public sector capacity to ensure rapidly pushing ahead Africa’s developmental agenda,” the Department of Public Service and Administration said.
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This was the first biennial conference of the AMDIN to discuss ways to boost performance standards, in the interest of securing human development in African.
The conference was attended by notable development partners including the African Union Commission and representatives from its programme Nepad, United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the World Bank, Commonwealth Secretariat and development agencies from German and the Japanese government.
The department said there was a need for MDIs to redefine their relevance within the national, sub-regional, and regional context to respond to the capacity deficits.
“The conference noted that such a responsive relationship should be supported by government nurturing their respective MDIs over the sustained period.
“Mindful of the fact that the capacity development is a multifaceted and long term agenda, the conference recognised interdependency between government and MDIs,” the department said.
The MDIs include the Ethiopian Civil Service College, the Malawi Institute of Management, the Kenyan Institute of Administration, the Ugandan Management Institute, the Zimbabwean Institute of Public Administration and Management and the South African Management Development Institute.
The conference further noted the importance of the Information and Communication Technology in improving the public sector.
“The conference was mindful of the development in Information and Communication Technology. Such developments provide the necessary platform for improving on the scale and quality of the work of African MDIs.
“Using such technology is the way to ensure the required results in a short period of time as demanded by existing development goals,” the department said.
The Network was launched in 2005, as part of initiatives to improve the capacity of AU states to deliver services on the continent.
It was conceived from the recommendations by the third Pan African Ministers of Public Service and Administration conference and was subsequently launched by MDIs from across the continent.
The Networks’ mission is to turn MDIs into centres of excellence, capable of responding to African development challenges and global engagements.
It also seeks to create a platform for African MDIs that articulates their collective voice, promoting mutual partnership and collaboration.
This is seen as the platform for MDIs in Africa to share experiences and collaborate on governance and administration matters pertinent to the development of the African continent and its public sector institutions.
