2. Learning Outcomes
• understand the statutory requirements for public participation in South Africa
• understand what public participation is and what it is not
• apply good-practice principles for successful public participation
• identify stakeholders
• apply the foundations and principles of public participation
• understand the full scope of planning needed for effective participation, including
information, timing, resources, techniques, and roles and responsibilities
• use a variety of ways to identify publics and understand potential impacts of actions
• select the appropriate level of public participation
• set clear, shared objectives for effective participation
• develop a public participation plan
• identify appropriate evaluation tools to measure the effectiveness of public participation
• understand the communication skills needed to support effective public participation.
• use appropriate communication skills, behaviours and tools to support effective public
participation
8. Participation fulfil four major functions
• Needs orientation: ensuring that peoples needs and
problems are taken into account
• Appropriateness of solutions: using knowledge & experience
of residents to arrive at sustainable solutions
• Community ownership: mobilising community's initiatives
and resources & partnerships between municipality &
communities for implementation & maintenance
• Empowerment: making integrated planning a public event
and forum for negotiating conflicting interests – creating a
basis for transparency and accountability towards residents
21. The Batho Pele Belief Set
Looking after our people by…
• Building a learning organisation
• Creating a culture of collaboration
• Allowing flexibility to learn
Looking after our internal & external customers by…
• Listening to their problems
• Apologizing when necessary
• Delivering solutions
Looking after our Country by…
• Anticipating customer needs
• Offering integrated service delivery
• Going beyond the call of duty
22. The 8 Principles remain the pillars of
the Belief Set
• Access: Offering integrated service delivery
• Openness and Transparency: Creating a culture
of collaboration
• Consultation: Listening to customer problems
• Redress: Apologizing when necessary
• Courtesy: Service with a smile
• Service standards: Anticipating customer needs
• Information: Going beyond the call of duty
• Value for money: Delivering solutions
23. Consulting Users of Services
• Ask citizens what they need
• Ask citizens how products & services can be improved
• Communicate through various media/tools
• Consult according to a systematic plan – part of the service
delivery improvement plan
24. Activity
• Indicate for each key area of service:
– How you currently consult with
your customers?
– How customers’ inputs are
incorporated in your SDI plans?
– When the last consultation was
carried out & when the next one
will take place?
– How do you intend to improve
the frequency, breadth &
objectivity of consultation?
25. Setting Service Standards
• What level & quality of services can be expected
• Set targets
• Measurement
• Know the national norms & standards
• Monitoring instruments should indicate to what extent
standards have been met
• Standards should be published
26. Activity
• Rate your services as if you were the
customer:
– Time
– Accessibility
– Quality
• New service standards to improve on
28. Ensuring Courtesy
• Treat citizens with courtesy & consideration
• Standards important
• Traits:
– Total commitment
– Loyalty to the public good
– Strict avoidance of conflict of interest
– Self-restraint
• Code of conduct
• Ethical behaviour
29. Activity
• What are the current standards of
behaviour for staff?
• How are these standards
communicated to staff?
• Indicate how these standards can be
raised & enforced.
30. Providing More & Better Information
• Inform in a clear & forthright way of the services provided &
how to reap the most benefits from those services
• Limit to disseminating factual information
• Get the citizen to take action
31. Activity
• Draft a Citizen’s Charter
– List the services you provide
– Indicate the standards customers can
expect to be met
– Indicate how complaints will be dealt
with
– List the responsibilities of the customer
– Indicate when standards will be
reviewed & how
32. Increasing Openness & Transparency
• Features of a democratic system of government
• White Paper on Public service Transformation requires
customers to participate in discussion of service delivery
issues, service standards & problems
• Reporting
• Accountability
34. Remedying Mistakes & Failures
• Invite criticism
• WPOPST specifies that a complaints system should be
reviewed & improved regularly according to:
– Complaints system well publicised
– Problems resolved speedily
– Complaints dealt with fairly & impartially
– Complainant’s identity confidential
– Responsiveness
– Mechanisms for review & feedback
– Training of employees
• Employees must be empowered
35. Activity
• What systems do you currently use
to deal with complaints?
• Do you get accurate statistics
timeously?
• Do you inform your customers on
how to lay a complaint, & how do
you inform them?
• How can you improve your
complaints system?
36. Value for Money
• Profit vs service delivery
• Principles of economy, effectiveness & efficiency
• Consider all resources (finances, equipment, materials,
people)
• Performance management
58. The Communication ProcessThe Communication Process
• No team/organisation can exist without communication
• Effective Interpersonal Communication
– Relevance
– Consistency
– Appropriateness
– Impact
59. Communication ModelCommunication Model
SENDER RECEIVER
SITUATION OR CONTEXT
1. Idea occurs
2. Message coded
3. Message transmitted
4. Message received
5. Message decoded
6. Idea understood
Feedback
Medium Channel
61. Barriers to Good CommunicationBarriers to Good Communication
• Intra-personal
– Perception
– Attitude
– Beliefs
– Emotional blocks
• Interpersonal
– Trust
– Credibility
– Language
– Nature of relationships
• Structural
– Status
– Group size
– Spatial constraints
• Physical/environmental & technological
62. Encourage FeedbackEncourage Feedback
So you do understand
what I mean Marvin? Sure I do !
To make sure we’re
on target, how about repeating what we
just discussed . . .
Well . . . um . . maybe you’d
better repeat that for me.
