AN ASSESSMENT OF PERFORMANCE CONTRACTING IN THE MALAWI CIVIL SERVICE: A CASE STUDY OF GOVERNMENT HEADQUARTERS

1. Department of Government and Public Administration, Lovely Professional University. 2. Assistant Professor, Department of Government and Public Administration, Lovely Professional University. ...................................................................................................................... Manuscript Info Abstract ......................... ........................................................................ Manuscript History Received: 12 March 2020 Final Accepted: 14 April 2020 Published: May 2020


ISSN: 2320-5407
Int. J. Adv. Res. 8(05), 523-534 524 In this regard, the civil service is a major player in ensuring that the above-mentioned functions are materialized. It, therefore, goes without saying that the performance of organizational goals for which ministries and departments are set up is of paramount importance. Non-performance or underperformance of MDAs is tantamount to misuse scarce public resources. Every organization whether public or private is established to accomplish one or more goals or objectives. Performance is the means through which such goals can be attained. Therefore, in order to measure the effectiveness of any organization and consequently its success or failure, there is a need to manage and measure the performance. In the public sector where achievement of goals is done for the public using public resources, performance management, and measurement is a moral obligation on the part of the government. This is even more of a serious issue in developing countries, where resources are scarce and therefore need to be used more efficiently and economically.
By way of background, Malawi is a small landlocked country in Southern Africa. Listed among the least developing countries, Malawi is a former protectorate of the British colonial rule. It gained independence on 6 th July 1964.
As with most British colonies and protectorates, Malawi inherited its administrative system from Britain however, over the years many administrative changes have been initiated.
As seen from the above section, the organizational performance of the civil service in Malawi is a very serious issue. Managing performance is, therefore, a crucial activity in the delivery of services to the Malawi population. It should be noted that the Malawi civil service was one of the best performing civil services in Africa in the 1970s and 1980s. However, thereafter, the performance of the civil service has been perceived to be deteriorating.
As important as the performance itself is its measurement or evaluation. A claim to performance or non-performance can only be substantiated by its systematic measurement. Performance measurement is done to assess the extent to which an entity has achieved its goals or targets. In any organization, public or private, performance measurement is done at two levels. The first level is organizational performance measurement and the other is individual/ employee performance measurement.
In the Malawi civil service, individual performance measurement has always been observed. It started with closed performance appraisals in the 1960s and transformed to open performance appraisals in 2008 (Government of Malawi, 2018). However, as regards organizational level performance measurement, the civil service lagged behind. In 2013, the government in an effort to improve the performance of the public sector introduced an accountability management framework. Under this framework, a tool for measurement of public institutions' organizational performance including MDAs known as Organizational Performance Agreement (OPA) was established. OPAs were agreements signed between the Chief Secretary on behalf of Government on one hand and Secretaries and Heads of Departments on the other hand in order to monitor the performance of planned strategic outcomes, outputs, targets, and allocated resources. OPAs had quarterly as well as annual assessments. Each MDA was required to submit no more than six priority strategic outcomes and no more than ten highest outputs within a strategic outcome.
However, immediately after, it was noted that the measurement tool had its shortfalls in implementation. This and the onset of the Public service reforms program necessitated a review of the tool. OPAs, therefore, was only implemented in the 2013/14 and 2014/15 financial years.
In 2015, with technical support from a UNDP funded project known as Development Effectiveness Accountability Project (DEAP), the Performance Enforcement Department revised the tool and the resulting tool designated as Performance Contract (PC). It came into effect in the 2015/16 financial year and is running as at present.
Four years later, in 2019, is organizational performance measurement using performance contracting been successful? Is it better than the Organizational Performance Agreements? Has the performance of the civil service improved?

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The main aim of the study was to assess the Performance Contracting, a form of organizational performance measurement in the Malawi civil service.
Performance measurement is very crucial to every organization. This is more so in the public sector where government ministries use public resources to conduct their work. Measuring the performance of public institutions is, therefore, not only a responsible thing to do but also an ethical thing towards the taxpayers. However, as lamented by Putu, Helden, and Tillema (2007), there is a lack of literature on performance measurement of public sector organizations, especially in developing countries. In Malawi apart from government evaluation reports, there is little known literature of organizational performance measurement in the public sector. Therefore, it was envisaged that the study will contribute to the literature on the subject matter in Malawi.
This study also aimed to help in the assessment of the current public sector organizational assessment tool known as performance contracting framework adopted by the Government of Malawi in order to see whether it is being implemented at all, and where it is implemented is it implemented in the way it was intended and finally to assess whether its implementation is improving the performance of ministries and departments.
The study also reviewed the failures of a previous tool that was used by the Malawi government known as organizational performance agreement and try to draw lessons that need not be repeated in the implementation of the current framework.
Finally, this study also looked at how performance contracting can be improved based on the best practices of a few selected countries through literature review and suggest recommendations based on the findings.

Definition of Performance Management:
Performance Management (PM) has been defined in many ways by many authors on the subject. Performance Management is the process in which managers ensure that employees' activities and outputs contribute to the organization's goals (Noe, Hollenbeck, Gerhart, and Wright 2016, p.299). Armstrong (2006) defines performance management as a systematic process for improving organizational performance by developing the performance of individuals and teams. DeCenzo and Robbins (2010) point out that, performance management systems involve many activities not only reviewing what the employee has done. Armstrong (2006, p.503) emphasizes that; 'Performance Management should be regarded as a flexible process not as a system' because they continue, '...the term 'system' implies a rigid, standardized, and bureaucratic approach that is inconsistent with the concept of performance management as a flexible and evolutionary, albeit coherent, process...' He further emphasizes that performance management is based on the principle of management by agreement and not management by command.

Performance Management and Performance Measurement:
Fryer, Antony, and Ogden (2009) make an important distinction between performance management and performance measurement. These two terms are usually confused. Performance measurement is a crucial part of performance management but only deals with the past while performance management extrapolates the data to provide information into the future of the organization. Their study also found out that even though performance management has been used in the public sector it hasn't necessarily brought about success. They recommend more involvement of stakeholders, employees, and partners in order to improve performance management in the public sector. Radnor and McGuire (2004) also differentiated between performance management and measurement. They note that performance measurement is about measuring performance while performance management is about reacting to the outcome of the measurement. The found out that in the public sector, performance is all about measurement rather than management. Neely (1999) notes that performance measurement has been part and parcel of planning and control of organizations. He even goes on to say that performance measurement must have been there when the first organization was 526 established. Chandler 1977 cited by Neely argued that management methods used to manage a big business today were in place as early as 1910 giving management of Du Pont as an example. Neely further cites the "Measurement Project" by General Electric in 1951 as one of the huge efforts of the organization to set systematic performance metrics. However, he notes that performance measurement really took off on a large scale by many business organizations in the late 1980s and early 1990s. This was both from the practical viewpoint as well as the theoretical side. He found out that between 1994 and 1996 alone, a total of 3615 articles on performance measurement were published. Some of the reasons for the rise of performance management were the changing nature of work, increasing competition, national and international awards, changing external demands, and the emergence of information technology among others. Halachmi (2005) gives compelling reasons why performance measurement should be at the heart of every organization some of which are given as follows.

Evolution of Performance Management:
Firstly, she argues that one cannot measure something if one does not understand. In turn, it is difficult to control something one does not understand. Subsequently, if you cannot control it, you cannot improve it. Secondly, the intention to measure performance gets people and organizations on their toes to get things done. She also emphasizes that if you cannot measure results, it is impossible to tell success from failure. And if success cannot be identified, it cannot be rewarded which may entail rewarding and reinforcing failure. Lastly, if you cannot show in comparison to your current status against the past or indeed with similar organizations, then your account may be called into question.
Most literature on performance management shows that it evolved in the private sector. Even today measurement of performance can be seen to be more active and almost the core of every private entity. However, as discussed next, performance measurement has also been adopted in the public sector administration.

Performance Management in the Public sector:
Fryer, Antony, and Ogden (2009) note that as voices for a need for "value for money" and "performance measurement" in public administration grew louder a new approach in public administration was necessary. A new approach termed New Public Management (NPM) which emphasized employment of professionals, explicit standards and measures of performance, adoption of private-sector management styles, and increased accountability among other premises for public administration was born. However, they note that even though performance management is regarded as a relatively new concept in the public administration realm, the New York Council used performance management as early as the 1900s although the term was not used until the 1970s. Shah (2017) acknowledges that performance management is more than a measurement of past performance and is an approach to improving future performance. He further notes that as the private sector used performance management to increase their productivity, the approach caught the attention of the public sector. He links the adoption of performance management as part of public sector administration with the emergence of New Public Management (NPM) which focused on market orientation and consumerism in public administration. He further notes that performance management across the globe spread and civil services of almost all countries have performance appraisal as part of their regular administrative cycles. He, however, noted that performance management took different shapes especially in developing countries with varying formality in the process.
Putu, Helden, and Tillema (2007) found out that even though Performance measurement is has gained ground in the public sector, it has failed to gain ground in the public sector of developing countries. They cite several factors that may cause this scenario including low institutional capacity, limited involvement of stakeholders, corruption, laxity, and low demand for performance information.
Lin and Lee (2011) however warn that performance management in the public sector has unique challenges different from those of the private sector. They argue that the public sector is complex and has a unique environment. They also point out that in the public sector, performance management is used as a control program to rectify errors, as a process of political communication which is used by elected members to control the administration and finally as a leading tool aimed at sowing seed of innovation. They conclude that performance management in the public sector should not only focus on reviewing and managing standards rather, but it should also consider actual circumstances of public organizational operation.

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Performance Contracting: According to Nganyi, Shigogodi, and Owano (2014), the concept of performance contracting started in France spread to the United States of America and later to all countries of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). Other countries in Asia, Africa, and South America are also using performance contracts in order to improve the performance of their public sectors. In their study, they noted that in public universities in Kenya, performance contracting had yielded results although limited due to other challenges such as lack of coordination.
Larbi (2001) affirm that performance contracts or agreements are central to the setting of explicit standards and measures of performance in the public sector brought about by the NPM movement. They adopt the World Bank definition of the performance contract given above. And OECD definition stresses the definition and of responsibilities and expectations between parties to achieve agreed results. Larbi found out that performance contracting as a tool mostly used in countries that had undergone some form of structural adjustment programs (SAPs).
Cheche and Muathe (2014) Suggest the same evolution of performance contracting as the authors above. However, they stress that in Africa, the end of colonization brought about the extension of the public sector. Unfortunately, the new leaders employed those who were loyal to their cause during the struggle regardless of skills and abilities. This lead to inefficient governments. As a condition for financial bailouts, Cheche & Muathe observe that the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund forced African governments to engage in Structural Adjustment Programs (SAPs) including the introduction of performance contracting. This study found out that there are research gaps in the field of performance contracting and suggested further research to fill the gaps.

Performance management and measurement in Malawi:
De Waal (2007) acknowledge that performance management is suitable for the improvement of organizations in developing countries. In his study of a Tanzanian organization, he observed that well if well implemented, performance, management is a very powerful tool. He, however, warns that it should neither be implemented lightly nor should it be underestimated. Rather it should be implemented wholeheartedly and with zeal. The MGDS under theme five -Improved governance and specifically under the public sector management section, set out strategies to achieve a "highly motivated, result-oriented, and productive civil service.' One of these strategies was the implementation of a 'non-salary incentive performance management system." (MGDS p. 64) According to the Government of Malawi (2015), the IPA was signed between the employee and the supervisor after discussing and agreeing on focus areas. The IPA assessed the employee according to the agreed work plan with a maximum score of 60 and several performance attributes with a maximum score of 40.
Several studies have been carried out in Malawi regarding the individual performance management system the Malawi civil service and the public sector at large.
Studies in the public sector, in general, include a dissertation by Khembo-Chipili in 2010, where he was assessing the effectiveness of the performance management system in relation to customer satisfaction at the Lilongwe Water Board. In his study, he found out that there was a lack of performance feedback at the institution.
Another study was done by Potani in 2012 also in his dissertation, where she sought to find out the success of the implementation of performance management systems at the Electricity Supply Corporation of Malawi. She found out successful implementation was hampered by a poor monitoring mechanism, lack of management commitment, non-competent trainers, and a culture of resistance just to mention a few.

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Several studies on performance management in the civil service, in particular, have also been carried out. For example, a dissertation by Chidwala in 2013 studied the implementation of the performance management policy in the Malawi civil service. Just like Potani, he found out that a lack of leadership commitment and resistance hampered the implementation.
Another study by Kadokera, also a dissertation, in 2015, found out that IPA was not fully rolled out at the Ministry of Information and Tourism. The author believes that from experience, this was not the only ministry where this was the case. Kadokera (2015) also found out that there was no link between the performance management system and training policy; rewards and promotions.
Systematic organizational management in the started later. According to a government report, (Government of Malawi, 2016), the Government of Malawi introduced an accountability framework for public sector service delivery starting 2013. The framework was initially known as the Organizational Performance Agreement (OPA) and was later revised and renamed as Performance Contract. Kalowamfumbi (2013) in his study of performance management system in the Ministry of Education, Science, and Technology, found out that the system had many faults including the structural arrangement of the ministry pertaining to reporting lines and unclear career paths, lack of communication strategies, inadequate financial resources among others.
As seen, most research pertains to individual performance management, there is little research on organizational performance especially one that looks at the civil service as a whole.

Methodology:-
The aim of this study was to assess organizational performance assessment in the Malawi civil service. In order to do so, the study sought to collect data directly from the first-hand users of the performance. In this regard, the study engaged in a qualitative approach in order to gather firsthand information as told by the civil servants who were interviewed, giving their experience and perceptions having been involved in the process. In this study, the quantitative approach i.e. the use of numerical data was not sought as was not best suited to answering the research questions at hand.

Sampling:
Sampling is defined as the process in which a sufficient number of elements are selected from the population for the purpose of the study (Ramamurthy, 2014).There are various methods in which sampling is done in social science studies. Various authors classify them differently, however, there are two broad categories, probability, and nonprobability sampling methods (Kothari and Garg, 2019, p.55) In probability sampling, every unit in the population has an equal chance of being incorporated in the sample. This is often referred to as simple random sampling. On the other hand, in non-probability sampling, every unit in the population has not the same chance of being incorporated in the sample. These methods include quota, convenience, judgment. Purposive and snowball sampling. There are also some methods that mix probability and non-probability in the sampling process. These include systematic, stratified, cluster, multi-stage, sampling with proportional to the size and sequential sampling (Ramamurthy,2014, p.84) As a way of background, Capital Hill houses eighteen Ministries and six Departments and Agencies of central government according to the Department of Human Resources Management and Development (DHRMD). The study aimed at assessing the organizational performance contracting at government headquarters, in this regard, therefore the population of the study was all MDAs at Capital Hill. However, to time limitation it was not possible to collect data from all MDAs, and therefore a sample was used.
The sample size was limited to twelve MDAs. Within each MDA, there are officers designated to implement and coordinate the performance contracting exercise between the MDA on behalf of the Principal Secretary (PS) and the Chief Secretary (CS) on behalf of the Government on the other hand. This study targeted those designated officers because of their expertise on the subject matter. In other words, the two-tier sampling used. First was random sampling to identify the twelve MDAs and thereafter, purposive sampling technique to identify and target those 529 officers who had in-depth knowledge of the workings of performance contracting in the civil service. Two officers were chosen per MDA giving us a total of 24 civil servants as our sample size.

Data Collection:
Every scientific research involves some collection of figures, words, or responses from which analysis and conclusions can be made. These figures, words, or responses are called data. This research was no different. Kumari (2008) further divides data into two. First, when the researcher collects data for the first time, it is called primary data. On the other hand, if the data collected has already been collected by someone else and already passed through the statistical process it is called secondary data (Kumari, 2008, p.65) In this study, both primary and also secondary data were collected.
Primary data, on the other hand, can be collected through various means. These include the survey method observation method, interview either personal or telephonic, questionnaire method, and collection of data through schedules. All of these methods have advantages and disadvantages.
However, overall interviews have proved to be reliable. For this reason, one on one interviews with the selected officers was conducted using a previously prepared interview schedule. The schedule semi-structured with closed and open-ended questions. This method was chosen as it was seen to best solicit data that would effectively answer the research questions regarding the background of organizational performance in the civil service, comparison of OPA and PC, and suggestions for improvement in the officers' own words. Chawla and Sondhi assert structured interviews has the "highest reliability and validity" as a method of primary data collection (Chawla and Sondhi, 2011, p.126).
The interviews were conducted within twenty to thirty minutes per interview. The deliberations were recorded on spaces provided for in the schedule by the researcher. No audio was recorded for all interviews conducted as in each case the interviewees opted for a "no recording" option.
The collection of secondary data was done through a review of government circulars, orders, policies other published documents in the topic, and any other relevant documents.

Data Analysis:
The aim of any study is to have some form of explanation, understanding, or interpretation of the data collected. This is called data analysis. In qualitative studies such as this one, there are mainly two approaches to data analysis. The first is a deductive approach and the other is the inductive approach. The deductive approach uses existing theory to shape the data analysis and collected data is grouped to look for similarities and differences. On the other hand, the inductive approach is used to build theory from the data that is collected. This study used a deductive approach. Patterns and themes were identified and grouped according to similarities. Microsoft Excel software used for data analysis in this study.

Result/Findings:-Organizational Performance Assessment:
In terms of general observations that the users of OPA had in using the tool, respondents were asked an open-ended question to explain their general experience with OPA. The following were the findings.Firstly, the respondents said that the tool was relatively easy to use. The scoring was easily understandable and was out of 100%. They also said that OPA was more closely related to the core activities. The targets and outcomes were directly related to the Work Plans and Annual Targets for the organization. Some noted that for big MDAs such as the Ministry of Health and Ministry of Education, Science, and Technology, Ministry Head Quarters has their own OPAs while sectors within the Ministry had their own OPAs as well.However, respondents also noted that there was a lack of awareness for the guidelines for implementation and reporting. Respondents also said that OPA was more process-oriented rather than result-oriented.
In terms of whether OPA implemented effectively in the way it was intended, findings were as follows.
The research found out that lack of funding, lack of awareness amongst staff not directly involved with the coordination, and lack of commitment and enforcement from superiors were the major reasons for reservations on OPAs lack of effectiveness. Lastly, others viewed more like an academic or theoretical exercise rather than a practical one.

Major shortcomings of OPA included:
1. Reduced and intermittent disbursement of funding from Treasury for implementation of activities; 2. Lack of awareness amongst staff not directly involved with the coordination; 3. Lack of commitment and laxity in enforcement from superiors; 4. MDAs" under commitment for fear of negative appraisal 5. No proper feedback on performance 6. Lack of rewards and sanction for good performance and poor performance respectively 7. Not legally enforceable 8. More focus on processes rather than results

Performance Contracts (PC):
Firstly, in terms of profession and grades of officers assigned to lead the process, the study found out that the task of coordination performance management of the MDA as one unit was mainly handled by Human Resource Management staff and Economic and Planning staff within the MDAs. Other professions only managed the performance of their respective departments. Out of the 24 respondents, 7 were Human Resource Management staff and 17 were Economic and Planning staff.
It was also observed that most of the officers involved with the coordination were within Junior and Senior Management. There was 1 respondent within Grade K-J (Supervisory level), 14 respondents within Grades I -G (Junior Management), 9 respondents within Grades F-D (Senior Management) and none within grades C and above (Super Scale). Perhaps because The Principal Secretary is the only officer within the last category at each MDA.
The research found out that out of the 24 respondents that were sampled, 9 respondents have served for 15 years or longer, representing 38% followed by 6 respondents with a length of service per category in the ranges of 5 to 10 years and 10 to 15 years, representing 25% per category. Lastly, there were 3 respondents who had served for less than 5 years.The research found out that the task of coordinating organizational performance in the MDAs was mainly done by experienced staff judging by their grade and length of service.
Therefore, the study found out that the task of coordination performance management of the MDA as one unit was mainly handled by Human Resource Management staff and Economic and Planning staff within the MDAs at junior

EFFECTIVENESS OF OPA IMPLEMENTATION
Effectiveness of OPA implementatio 531 and senior management levels. The coordination was done by experienced staff. However, the lack of involvement of other professionals may limit innovation and input.
In terms of whether PC is being implemented in its true spirit or in other words, effectively in the way it was intended, findings were as follows: From the graph above, it was found out that a significant figure of respondents (16), although with varying magnitudes agreed that the PC is being implemented in its true spirit. However, 8 respondents thought that there were some still problems especially emanating from lack of funding and coordination form departmental heads.
In terms of whether the PC has contributed or will contribute towards the success of their MDAs, the 24 respondents were asked to rate effective implementation on a Likert. 6 respondents agreed, 14 respondents responded that they somewhat agreed and 4 respondents said that they strongly agreed. Even for respondents that disagreed in that the PC was not being implemented effectively, thought that it was a step in the right direction and would lead to the success of their MDAs mainly because it was a deliberate effort to encourage and measure performance.
Respondents were optimistic about the ability of organizational performance measurement tools to contribute towards the success of their respective MDAs. Although there are some issues, the Performance Contract is being implemented more effectively as compared to the OPA. Challenges included: 1. Reduced and intermittent disbursement of funding from Treasury for implementation of activities; 2. lack of awareness and cooperation amongst staff not directly involved with the coordination; 3. lack of commitment and laxity in enforcement from superiors; 4. Concentration on governance issues and cross-cutting issues such as environmental protection which may be outside of the control of particular MDAs; 5. Some outcomes such as ISO certification are heavily reliant on third parties and may take time to realize; 6. The complicated calculation for the scoring of targets; 7. PC is seen as foreign, certain parameters are difficult to achieve in the current socio-economic and political environment; 8. No rewards beyond public recognition for good performers and lack of sanctions for underperformers; 9. Lack of rewards and sanction for good performance and poor performance respectively 10. Not legally enforceable

EFFECTIVENESS OF PC IMPLEMENTATION
Effectiveness of PC implementation 532 From the above list, the research found out that even though respondents were optimistic about the PC, its implementation is still riddled with a number of problems areas that need rectifying.
In terms of whether the PC should be revised or not, only 2 out of 24 respondents suggested that the PC should be revised. The rest said that the PC need not be revised, rather more awareness and training needs to be conducted.

Limitations And Study Forward:
Limitations of the study included resources and time, lack of Malawian literature on performance measurement at the organizational level particularly in terms of the public sector. In as much as this study contributed to the body of research on organizational performance measurement especially for the public sector in Malawi, there is a lack of literature on the topic. Therefore, there is a need to conduct further research on the topic. Specifically, there is a need for further research on the reliability of the assessment tools used in the Malawi civil service. Further research is also required on the effectiveness of the organizational performance measurement implementation and finally, there is a need for Research into whether organization performance if affected depending on the profession, grade, and experience of coordinating teams.

Conclusion and Recommendations:-
To conclude, the introduction of organizational performance measurement by the Malawi government was a stride in the right direction. The measurement of performance at the organization or MDA level started only in 2013 with the introduction of Organisational Performance Assessment (OPA). However, the OPA had its implementation challenges. A change to Performance contracting (PC) increased the effectiveness of organizational performance measurement according to the respondents of the study or their optimism at least. However, the PC is not without flaws.
Some of the challenges are common to the impediment of both regimes of performance measurements. These include inadequate and intermittent funding of Ministries and Departments which negatively affect their achievement of set goals. There is also laxity and lack of commitment on the part of both leadership and implementers. This coupled with nearly inexistent rewards and sanctions for good and bad performance hinders the effectiveness of the initiative. Inadequate training and awareness of the measurement tools also negatively affected implementation. Lastly, but arguably, more importantly, respondents noted that there was a lack of legal backing for the performance measurement and management in the civil service.
Some challenges were, however, unique to the PC. These include the instrument's difficulty to use. Most respondents complained of the complicated nature of the calculation of scores in the PC and compared them to that of the OPA. Respondents also expressed concern on the PC's emphasis on measurement of performance on non-core activities and some seemingly overly ambitious targets such as ISO certification. Respondents hinted that there was a need to focus on achieving core activities and more pressing issues given the limited resources. Finally, respondents expressed the need for a multi-disciplinary approach to performance measurement in the MDAs. They noted that departmental heads and staff of departments other than those charged with the coordination of performance measurement did not own the process and therefore performance measurement did not take the forefront organizational-wide.
From the finding of the study therefore, the following suggestions are made: 1. Firstly, MDAs should continue to be entrusted to experienced staff. However, MDAs should consider constituting multi-disciplinary teams to coordinated the task rather than leave it to Planning departments and Human Resource Management departments alone. A multidiscipline team may include all departmental/ sectional heads for example. This will ensure buy-in and ownership of performance measurement organizational-wide. 2. Secondly, the Government should involve many stakeholders including end-users, the private sector, and the general public in the development of all performance measurement programs. Feedback from such stakeholder should be taken on board in future revisions of the performance system 3. Thirdly, the Government should continue to enforce usage of Performance Contracting to all MDAs. For instance, clear rewards and sanctions strategy should be put in place in order to encourage as well as improve accountability of performance. The government should also increase awareness of the presence of the organizational performance measurement programs as well as train all staff. 533 4. Lastly, the Government should follow through with obligations including the provision of adequate and timely funding to MDAs in order to ensure the effective performance of the contracts by the MDAs. As rightly articulated in the PC, both parties have obligations to perform, therefore in order to ensure performance by the MDA, it is imperative that the government performs its part of the bargain. 5. The government should consider legislating an Act for enforcement of performance management in the public sector in order to give the much need legal backing to performance management and measurement.