DPSA

About Us

Department of Public Service and Administration (DPSA) According to Chapter 10 (Section 195 [1]) of the Constitution of the Republic, Public Administration must be governed by the democratic values and principles enshrined in the Constitution, including the following principles:

• • 1. A high standard of professional ethics must be promoted and maintained;
    2. Efficient, economical, and effective use of resources must be promoted;
    3. Public administration must be development-oriented;
    4. Services must be provided impartially, reasonably, equitably, and without bias;
    5. People’s needs must be responded to, and the public must be encouraged to participate in policymaking;
    6. Public administration must be accountable;
    7. Transparency must be fostered by providing the public with timely, accessible and accurate information;
    8. Good human-resources management and career-development practices, to examine human potential, must be cultivated and
    9. Public administration must broadly represent the South African people, with employment and personnel management practices based on ability, objectivity, fairness, and the need to redress past imbalances to achieve broad representation.

Legislative Mandate

The Department of Public Service and Administration draws its legislative mandate from section 197, read with section 195(1) of the Constitution, the Public Service Act of 1994, and the Public Administration Management Act of 2014.

In terms of the Public Service Act of 1994, the Minister for Public Service and Administration is responsible for establishing norms and standards relating to;

• • 1. The functions of the public service;
    2. Organizational structures and establishments of departments and other managerial and governance arrangements in the public service;
    3. Labor relations, conditions of service, and other employment practices for employees;
    4. The Health and wellness of employees; information management;
    5. Electronic government in the public service;
    6. Integrity, ethics, conduct, and anti-corruption; and
    7. Transformation, reform, innovation, and any other matter can be used to improve the effectiveness and efficiency of public service and its delivery to the public.

According to section 41 of the Public Service Act and subject to the Labour Relations Act and any collective agreement, the Minister may make regulations on matters required or permitted by the Act.

In terms of section 3(5)(a) of the Public Service Act, the Minister may, subject to the Labour Relations Act and any collective agreement, make determinations regarding the conditions of service of employees generally or categories of employees, including determinations regarding salary scales and allowances for particular categories of employees.

Section 5(6) of the Public Service Act provides that all collective agreements contemplated in section 5(4) are deemed to be determinations made by the Minister, who is further empowered to issue directives to elucidate or supplement such determinations.

The Public Administration Management Act 2014 seeks to promote the values and principles contained in section 195(1) of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 1996, by establishing a framework that creates a unified system of public administration that traverses all three spheres of government. The Public Administration Management Act provides for:-

• • employee mobility between all three spheres of government through transfers and secondments;
  • the prohibition of employees and special advisers from doing business with the State;
  • the disclosure of financial interests of employees, special advisers, and their spouses/ life partners;
  • the Minister to determine minimum norms and standards relating to, amongst others, section 195(1) values and principles; capacity development and training; ICT in the public administration; integrity, ethics, and discipline; disclosure of financial interests; measures to improve the effectiveness and efficiency of institutions;
  • the Minister to issue regulations regarding a framework for the establishment, promotion, and maintenance of service centers to enhance the service delivery of services to the public;
  • the establishment of a Public Administration Ethics, Integrity, and Disciplinary Technical Assistance Unit to strengthen oversight of ethics, integrity,y and discipline management and to put in place measures to deal with corruption-related misconduct in the public administration;
  • Establish the Office of Standards and Compliance to ensure compliance with minimum norms and standards set by the Minister.