ETHICS AND ACCOUNTABILITY FOR ENHANCED PUBLIC SERVICE DELIVERY IN AFRICA
26-27 May 2003
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
TABLE OF CONTENTS
I. Introduction
II.
Conceptual Discussion of Ethics and Accountability
1. Ethics
2. Accountability
1. Lack of Professionalism, declining sense of integrity and honesty, and conflict of interest
2. Poor remuneration and incentive policies
3. Administrative and bureaucratic malpractices
4. Weak institutions for enforcing ethical and accountability Standards
5. Politicization of African public Services
6. Deprofessionalization of the public services
7. The brain drain problem
8. The contribution of international business to the ethical Deficit and corruption in Africa
1. The Driving Forces for Ethics and Accountability in Africa Public Services
2. Why change does not occur?
V. Policies and Strategies to Promote Ethical Behavior and Accountability in Public Services
1. Create enabling conditions to enhance professional and Ethical standards in public services
2. Institutionalize professional and merit-based public services Career systems
3. Decentralize public services to promote accountability and Responsiveness in service delivery
4. Enforce strict ethical and accountability standards on public Service managers
5. Incorporate ethics/citizenship/civics education as part of civil Service training and formal educational curriculum
6. Institute preventive methods to combat corrupt practices and Unethical values
VI. Problems of State Revenue Mobilization in Africa
1. Weak revenue base
2. Lack of control over expenditures
3. Main sources of revenue
1. Throughout much of Africa, there is now widespread awareness that enhanced public service delivery is the hallmark of responsive governance. Equally important is the recognition that the level and quality of public services is as important as the values of ethics and accountability of public institutions that deliver those services. Indeed, maintaining appropriate ethical standards and accountability of public service institutions have become a litmus test of the commitment of African governments to the norms of good governance and responsible leadership. The concern for ethics and accountability for enhanced public service delivery in Africa is all the more legitimate because coupled with the efficient and effective provision of public services this important parameter of good governance earns African states legitimacy and popular support from their peoples.
2. The significance of ethics and accountability for enhanced public service delivery should be closely linked with the concept and practice of good governance. Ever since it became a subject of academic and political discourse around the end of the 1980s largely triggered by the deepening crisis that engulfed much of the continent, good governance began to signify the exercise of legitimate state authority anchored on the consent of the governed and active participation of the citizenry in public affairs. An essential precondition for legitimate exercise of state authority and one that nurtures harmonious state-society relations is the efficient and effective provision of public services. The degree to which public service institutions embrace the values of responsiveness, accountability and integrity in responding to the needs and demands of the people is an important aspect of good governance and signifies legitimate exercise of state authority.
3. As a governance agenda, the issue of ethics and accountability for enhanced public service delivery must be considered within the context of the anti-poverty strategies put in place by African governments. In recent years, many African governments have adopted Poverty Reduction Strategy Policies (PRSPs) to fight widespread poverty afflicting their peoples. These policies are proposed to be country-owned and participatory involving a cross-section of civil society in formulating and implementing poverty reduction measures. According to the strategy, African governments and their development partners are convinced that an important policy element to reduce poverty is to increase access to basic social and economic services for a significant proportion of the population. Further, there is also the recognition that an enhanced and efficient public service delivery system that is accountable and responsive to the needs and demands of the people is an important policy option to reduce the magnitude and level of poverty.
4. It is against the preceding brief introduction that this technical paper will assess the state of ethics and accountability for enhanced public service delivery in Africa. Its main objective is to bring out ways and means of enhancing ethical performance and accountability in African public services. More specifically, this publication will:
- Provide a brief conceptual discussion of ethics and accountability;
- Identify factors that contribute to declining ethical and professional standards in African public services;
- Assess efforts to remedy the problem of ethical deficit and lack of accountability in African public services;
- Suggest policies and strategies to promote ethical behavior and accountability of African public services;
- Identify problems of state revenue mobilization in Africa and assess tax collection by governments in real estate, businesses and customs.
II. Conceptual discussion of ethics and accountability
1. Ethics
5. Concepts of ethics and accountability describe desirable characteristics and values of public service employees in democratic societies. They connote a sense of integrity, responsiveness, answerability and acceptable norms of behavior that public officials must strictly adhere to in the process of delivering public services to the citizenry. In addition, the terms also connote high-order values of professionalism that include professional conscience, honesty, neutrality, self-denial and a passion for excellence in the public services (Kamto, 1997).
6. Modern governments make use of many practical measures to enforce compliance with ethical codes and standards by public service agencies. The most common of these tools is ethics legislation that requires public servants and candidates for public jobs to fill out financial and private property disclosure forms. This is an important measure to control illicit enrichment and unlawful amassing of private wealth by public servants through abuse of official positions (Levine, et. al., 1990).
7. Upholding the principles and standards of right conduct in the administrative sphere of government is an important aspect of public service ethics. An essential requirement in this is that public servants respect the rule of law and the dignity of the individual in carrying out official responsibilities (Levine, et.al.1990; Hunt, 1997). In addition, civil servants have also to develop a sense of responsibility for their actions as part of ethical and professional behavior. In a democratic society, elected representatives of the people and an active civil society ensure that public service managers adhere to acceptable standards of professional conduct in carrying out their official responsibilities. This is mainly achieved by making the business of government open, transparent and accountable (Harmon, 1984).
8. To sum up, the term ethics conjures vital principles of consistency, fairness, honesty, integrity and responsiveness in public service organizations. In a democracy, public service managers will be obliged to adhere to these values in dealing with the citizenry. These normative principles are considered democratic rights of the people and have become the barometers for enhanced ethics and accountability in public service delivery.
2. Accountability
9. Accountability implies that public managers must be ultimately answerable to elected public officials. The term summons up the concept of `overhead bureaucracy', i.e. a method of controlling public servants by making them subordinate to the will of elected representatives of the people (Meier, 1987). In other words, it implies responsiveness to the wishes of elected officials in parliament rather than the expertise and judgment of civil servants. In democratic governance, parliamentary answer and question sessions and clarifications on government policies provided by the executive help to enforce accountability and control over public service managers.
10. A public service can be said to be accountable to the citizenry when it conducts its work in an open, transparent and responsive manner. Once a government fails to do this, administrative and political malpractices, such as conflict of interest, corruption, offer and acceptance of bribes and graft, diversion of public resources to private use, misuse of government property, destruction of case files and subversion of the judicial process, abuse of authority and blatant disregard for official rules and regulations can become rampant. The prevalence of these ills undermines trust and legitimacy in the public administrative system.
11. Accountability and responsiveness of the public services to the people promote trust and legitimacy in government.The two complement each other because responsiveness provides the basis for accountability, which in turn is supposed to make public officials responsible for their actions and/or inactions. In the final analysis, responsiveness and accountability ought to increase the transparency of government, emphasize and enhance governmental responsiveness and legitimacy, and improve the environment for efficient and effective service delivery (Olowu, 1993; Meheret, 1998).
12. There are internal and external mechanisms for ensuring accountability in public service agencies. The internal accountability mechanisms include civil service rules and regulations, disciplinary procedures and policies and management audits and inspectorates. Also, management mechanisms, i.e. mission statements, task descriptions, periodic performance reviews, management information systems (MIS), management by objectives (MBOs), evaluation and monitoring indices, codes of conduct, etc. are practical internal accountability mechanisms. Usually, these mechanisms are intended to insure that financial resources and property are properly used to attain the organization's objectives as efficiently as possible (Rasheed & Olowu, 1995).
13. External institutions for enforcing accountability include the legislature, public accounts committees, office of the auditor general, the offices of the ombudsman, the judiciary, civil service administrative tribunals and other specialized independent commissions. Another set of external institutions includes a vibrant, responsible and independent media and press, pressure and lobby groups, political parties and civil society organizations, such as professional, cultural and economic associations.
14. It can be concluded that ethics and accountability complement one another because professional ethics is the basis of accountability (Rasheed, 1995). In the civil service, the concept and practice of accountability embrace the notion of public officials being responsible for their actions or inactions. It is supposed to make government transparent and responsive in formulating and implementing public policies. The main principle of accountability embraces the notion that the civil service serves the tax-paying citizen and can carry out its responsibilities and duties strictly within in the public interest.
15. Public services in Africa suffer from a serious deficit of ethical norms and values. The diminishing level of professionalism is primarily exacerbated by weak public institutions and wanton disregard for practices of accountability by public managers and civil servants. The ethical deficit and declining professional standards have negative consequences on the performance of public services and contributed to the inability of the African state to manage development.
16. In Africa, standards of professionalism and ethical behavior were greatly eroded as a direct consequence of the political turmoil and economic decline that engulfed many African states beginning in the early 1980s. Lack of firm political commitment by African governments to institutionalize public services dedicated to the highest standards of ethical conduct and professionalism has led to declining values of professionalism in the public services. The following discussion brings out some factors that contribute to declining ethical and accountability standards of African public services:
1. Lack of professionalism, declining sense of integrity and honesty, and conflict of interest
17. Lack of professionalism, declining sense of integrity and honesty and conflict of interest have marred African public services. An important explanation for the loss of the professional integrity of African public services has been the widespread use of shady personnel practices. For example, promotions in the professionals' category, such as university graduates or graduates from Public Administration Institutes, are not based on performance or degree of efficiency in carrying out the work. There are no clear and objective criteria for staff evaluation. As such, it is not the most competent and hard working, who are promoted but the politically well connected. As a result, the most competent and honest staff get discouraged by what happens around them and do not hesitate to resort to corrupt practices to get even.
18. The legal status of certain categories of staff is either unclear or is ignored. For example, technical/lab assistants in universities, hospitals, etc. do not have a clear legal statute and their salaries and other benefits are haphazardly determined. There is no specific career plan and merit based promotion is rare for these employees. This is a principal source of discontent that will compel these employees to resort to corrupt tactics to get even. In sum, all these factors: i, ii, and iii, lead to the loss of integrity and honesty in African public services.
2. Poor remuneration and incentive policies
19. Poor working conditions and miserable pay are crucial problems that contribute to the loss of integrity and deplorable service record of African public services (Rasheed, 1995). Poor salaries do not motivate public employees to increase productivity or enhance commitment to public service. Further, public service salaries are not competitive with what the private sector/market offers for similar qualifications and levels of competence. This situation has led to uncontrollable loss of professional talent to the private sector leaving public service organizations with `deadwood' or `mediocre' elements.
20. Over the years, many African governments have had specific public service reform programs. But, most of these programs deal with other aspects of the public services and the issue of pay has remained unresolved. Poor public service pay has produced the following negative consequences on African public services:
- Biologists and Chemists instead of teaching in staff-starved high schools prefer to stay in government bureaucracies where they can collect some fringe benefits;
- Engineers instead of being on-site construction activities prefer the luxury of staying in an office because they can earn more with much less inconvenience;
- Medical doctors in public health institutions and hospitals set up private practices, or provide part-time services in private clinics to have ends meet;
- University staff engage in moonlighting or extensive consultancy ventures because of the meager pay they receive from the government.
3. Administrative and bureaucratic malpractices
21. Administrative and bureaucratic malpractices have eroded the integrity of the public services in Africa. Poor compensation and reward policies have generated administrative malpractices with far reaching negative consequences, including petty and grand fraud, bribes, kickbacks, circumventing laws and regulations to aggrandize personal advantage and using government property and time for private gains. The inability of African governments to pay salaries that enable public servants to lead a standard of living commensurate with their professional and career status encourages such corrupt practices. Realizing that they do no receive salaries to lead a reasonably acceptable standard of living, public servants resort to unconventional means of supplementing income to make ends meet.
4. Weak institutions for enforcing ethical and accountability standards
22. Throughout much of Africa, enforcing institutions and mechanisms have not been effective in monitoring standards of professional ethics and accountability in public services. One of the most common enforcing institutions of service integrity and accountability are professional associations, which, as independent civic society organizations, can prescribe standards of conduct and service delivery to be strictly followed by the membership. But, these associations are few in number and are constrained by institutional, legal and capacity constraints to play the vital role of enforcing professional and ethical standards of service.
23. Government watchdog organizations have often been formally mandated to oversee the strict enforcement of ethical and professional standards of conduct in public service institutions. Examples include inspectorate offices, the auditor general, civil service ethics commissions, anti-corruption and ethics commissions, offices of the ombudsman/woman, attorney and prosecutor general offices and other relevant watchdog organizations. In recent years, most of these have been wanting in effectiveness in enforcing ethical and professional standards because political and bureaucratic problems have affected their efficacy as viable oversight institutions of public ethics and integrity.
24. Several reasons account for the failure of watchdog organizations in upholding ethical norms in public services:
- Public employees do not adhere to the legal framework for enforcing accountability. Very often, the legal statute is ignored and is viewed as inconsequential serving no purpose at all.
- Anti-corruption civil service tribunals or disciplinary councils which look into irregularities, such as abuse of authority, embezzlement of public funds, unlawful enrichment, etc. have proved ineffective because of too much patronage. Very often, the higher ups in the organizational hierarchy interfere in the work of such bodies and ask for clemency/ leniency to protect their protégés.
- The judiciary is not effective because:
(i) Judges in many places in Africa are not free from patronage that affect the public services;
(ii) Courts are overworked and clogged with many other backlog cases;
(iii) Judges are insufficient numbers for the overwhelming court cases;
(iv) The support structures for the administration of justice are inadequately trained staff and are poorly equipped and paid.
25. The combined effects of inadequacies i-iv has meant that African judicial systems and legislatures have become `toothless' institutions in fighting corruption. Hence, they are less keen to stamp out corruption and anti-ethical behavior in public services.
5. Politicization of African public services
26. The politicization of African public services is an impediment to ethics. African public services have long been subjected to pervasive control and manipulation by politicians. Many years of unfettered politicization of the public services has undermined professionalism and generated mediocrity and poor service performance. It has also compelled public managers to be answerable to politicians at the cost of a diminished sense of responsiveness and accountability to the people.
27. The immediate years of post-independence Africa saw the advent of one-party rule. Multi-party politics was rejected because it was argued parties would be based upon ethnic groups, and this would be a recipe for chaos and inter-ethnic conflicts. Single party politicians gave high managerial and administration positions in the government and parastatal sector to the party faithful and civil servants considered not to be in favor of the ruling party were left out of the loot.
28. The advent of multi-partyism did not change the politicization of the public services. Ruling parties continued to reward their loyalists with senior management positions in the public services as well as the in the boards/directorates and management of public enterprises. Such appointed managers owe their positions to their bosses in the higher levels of government and party. Hence, their performance as managers is secondary to their commitment and loyalty to the party. As a result, core values of pubic service ethics, such as accountability, fairness, integrity, objectivity, equity, consistency, do not mean much; and the motto ` if everybody else does it, why should I be an exception' became the norm.
6. Deprofessionalization of the public services
29. Deprofessionalization of the public services has undermined the state of ethics and accountability in many African states. It has resulted in the public services being filled with personnel whose card is none other than their ascribed qualifications of ethnic background or political allegiance. When loyalty to political bosses rather than service performance becomes the sole criterion for keeping one's job, public servants owe little answerability and accountability to the needs and concerns of the public.
30. Selective recruitment for public jobs based on ethnic, political and religious considerations has produced two negative consequences on African public services. First, the public services have become a haven for non-competitive, non-aspiring and vegetative cadre of people known in common parlance as the `deadwood'. Second, the clientele public receives poor quality service provided by second-rate public employees.
31. The lower echelons of the public services are overstaffed with semi-skilled workers, including clerks, secretaries, letter carriers, reproduction staff, etc. all of whom have no marketable skills to venture into the labor market. This glut of employees generally receives poor pay but stay on because of the job security they enjoy.
7. The brain drain problem
32. African public service institutions have long suffered from a serious dearth of competent and professional personnel. A major factor contributing to the shortage of high caliber personnel has been the brain drain afflicting public service systems of African countries. The existing miserable pay and incentives have caused a wave of migrations of highly trained professional talent in two directions. First, on the domestic front, Africa's highly educated managerial and technical personnel have been moving into the private and NGO sectors in search of better pay and working conditions. Second, international/continental organizations and foreign governments, mostly western, which can offer better pay and working conditions, have lured away many highly trained personnel from poor African governments, which cannot afford to pay decent salaries to their own nationals.
33. The problem of brain drain is having a devastating effect on the African continent. Between 1960-1975, some 27,000 well educated Africans departed for the west. From 1975 to 1984, the number of emigrants rose to 40,000 per year, and reached 80,000 by 1987. Since the early 1990's, about 23,000 qualified academic professionals emigrate each year in search of better working conditions (ECA, 2000; Johnson, 2000).
8. The contribution of international business to the ethical deficit and corruption in Africa
34. The conduct of international business has contributed to falling ethical and integrity standards in African states. Bribery of public officials in Africa has often been used by international businessmen in developed countries as fair and legitimate methods for export promotion. Such an action has encouraged and abetted unethical behavior and corruption because many western governments in industrialized countries ignore the bribery, some openly promote it and a few even make it tax deductible (Rasheed, 1995).
36. There is an urgent need to enforce ethical behavior to curb grand corruption in Africa. Over the past few years, Transparency International (TI) has been documenting several problems in this regard and demanding that action be taken to remedy it. For example, it recently disclosed that in oil-rich Gabon and Congo-Brazzaville, oil and political pay-offs define the landscape of corruption. An investigation in France has uncovered that secret slush funds were allegedly run by state-owned oil giant ELF Aquitaine in order to pay top officials in both countries, as well as in France (Warigi, 2001).
37. Over the past many years, many African governments have taken measures to remedy the ethical deficit and lack of accountability in the public services. Africa's development partners, including the World Bank, IMF and bilateral governments, have exerted tremendous pressures on African governments to take concerted actions to combat unethical and corrupt practices in government. The donor community required a track record of clean government to be eligible for development aid and transfer of resources. In response, African governments took a variety of measures ranging from enacting codes of ethics to establishing institutions to enforce ethical behavior.
38. The various attempts by African governments to curb corruption and anti-ethical norms have produced little impact on public institutions. The driving forces behind these attempts and why there has been little change are subjects of discussion in the following sections.
1. The Driving Forces for Ethics and Accountability in African Public Services
- International pressure
39. International pressure has been a principal driving force for higher ethical and accountability standards in African governments. Multi-lateral and bilateral donors have played a central role in pressing for ethical and governance reform in much of Africa. In recent years, donor concerns at how funds are disbursed have led to a new interest in methods of curbing unethical practices and corruption in government. As a result, various international aid agencies, regional organizations and bilateral governments are requiring an anti-corruption clean bill of health from governments in order to be eligible for aid and loans.
- Emergence of an active civil society culture
40. The past few years have seen the emergence and development of a vigorous civil society culture that has struggled to increase its involvement in the policy making and implementation process. Civil society organizations have come to play an increasing role in fighting anti-ethical behavior and corruption in public institutions in Africa. In addition, they have become vocal in demanding a more transparent, accountable and responsive public service delivery system. In countries where anti-corruption efforts have proved successful, creative partnerships between government, civil society, the private sector, independent professional associations and organizations have made a real difference because of the pivotal role the burgeoning civil society organizations have been playing in promoting responsiveness and accountability of public services.
- Democratization and Liberalization
41. The drive for ethics and accountability by African governments has been very much aided by the democratic changes that took place over the past few years. The wave of democratization and liberalization that swept the continent starting in the late 1980s has exerted pressure on African governments to uphold the principles of good governance and make their administrations more responsive and accountable to the needs and demands of the people. Because of the popular demands for democratic governance and greater transparency, African governments have been seen implementing national ethics, integrity and anti-corruption policies to make public institutions accountable and responsive to the people.
2. Why change does not occur?
(i) Undemocratic governance is an impediment to ethics and accountability of public services
42. The attempt to stamp out grand corruption in many African countries has turned out to be an abortive exercise because the nature of governance has remained undemocratic. Over the past several years, reform initiatives to deal with the problem of corruption and unethical behavior in public institutions have been largely unsuccessful because they were implemented in an undemocratic governance environment which was not receptive to radical resolution of the general deterioration of ethical and accountability standards. Anti-ethical behavior and corruption measures will be effective only when African governments show a firm political commitment to the principles and practices of good governance.
(ii) Lack of firm political commitment to fight corruption and anti-ethical conduct
43. Anti-corruption efforts must be backed by genuine political will if they are to stand any chance of proving effective. Most anti-corruption crackdowns by African governments have been public relations exercises. African governments have been seen to be reluctant to take action in cases of corruption or mismanagement where there is no political benefit to the government. Political bosses have been seen interfering in the investigative process seeking leniency/clemency for friends and political loyalists involved in acts of corruption and unethical practices.
44. Creating an anti-corruption institution by itself does not ensure its effectiveness unless it is combined with measures that can enhance the accountability, transparency and responsiveness of public administrative systems. African governments must demonstrate firm political commitment to make public institutions responsive and accountable to the people. For example, apart from ensuring accountable, fair and transparent public services, governments should increase mobilization of civil society in advocacy for transparency; and enhance civil society involvement in speeding up institutional reforms for efficient and effective service delivery.
V. Policies and strategies to promote ethical behavior and accountability in public services
45. Over the past few years, African governments have taken different policy measures to enhance ethics and accountability in government. The various efforts were prompted by internal and external pressures, including the increase in the incidence of unethical practices; the wave of political liberalization that swept most of Africa since 1989; a budding civil society that demanded greater enforcement of ethical standards and the punishment of violators; a growing recognition that unethical practices have contributed to the economic difficulties of African countries; and the pressure exerted by international donors requiring African countries to strictly adhere to good governance and the curtailment of waste and squandering of resources (Rasheed, 1995).
1. Create enabling conditions to enhance professional and ethical standards in public services
46. African government must create a healthy environment to promote ethical behavior and professionalism in the public services. The liberalization of the political process and the commitment to transparent and accountable governance are essential conditions for success. It is vitally important to enhance awareness that public managers will be held accountable and answerable for results alone rather than political indices for success. Accountability to the citizenry and professional conduct should reign supreme over any political criteria for evaluation. The ultimate verdict on public managers should be passed by citizens as customers of government who will judge the quality and quantity of public service and its delivery in an efficient and effective manner.
2. Institutionalize professional and merit-based public services career systems
47. To enhance integrity and accountability, public servants should be selected on the basis of achievement criteria and merit rather than patronage or political loyalty considerations. Merit selects the best personnel for the bureaucracy. This promotes efficient and effective service management and delivery in modern governments; and African public services cannot afford to be immune from this observation.
48. Recruitment and selection for public jobs in African public services have been and are still very much influenced by patronage and political considerations. This practice has compelled public service managers to be accountable to politicians rather than standards of impartial professionalism and unfettered civic duty. Further, it has also turned African public services into breeding grounds for mediocrity and second-rate government functionaries who can survive only by clinging to the political order of the day.
49. Political recruitment sacrifices excellence in public service for mediocrity. As a result, it is the public who pay the price for poor service. Inefficient public servants are also unaccountable and unresponsive to the concerns and needs of the public. In such a situation, opportunities abound for abuse of office for self-enrichment and deliberate flouting of established ethical and professional standards in public service systems. It is necessary to institute attractive compensation packages for public employees, including competitive salaries and benefits for civil service employees. This can reduce the temptation to engage in corrupt and undesirable practices, such as graft, bribes and kickbacks (AAPAM, 1984).
3. Decentralize public service to promote accountability and responsiveness in service delivery
50. Decentralization has wide-ranging implications for ethical values and professionalism in public service delivery. One of the consequences of decentralization has been to place the responsibility for managing public services at the point of activity, i.e. local governments and municipalities. Lower levels of governments have become entry points for providing service and carrying out government functions. This offers lots of opportunities for enhanced accountability and responsiveness in public service at the local level because the people are nearer to the centers of service delivery and are thus in a better position to hold public managers accountable and responsible for the quality and quantity of services.
51. In Zimbabwe, for example, decentralization has opened opportunities to enhance integrity and accountability in services delivery by municipal and local governments. The measures put in place to decentralize public services have encouraged civil society and other stakeholders to hold local government officials and councilors to be accountable and responsive to the needs and concerns of the residents. In a trial experiment in two municipalities, the following specific measures were put in place to build local integrity and accountability systems:
- Incorporating service delivery surveys in the budget cycle;
- Establishing a mechanism for involving residents directly in the preparation of the local budget;
- Making municipal documents and service plans auditable records;
- Commissioning preparation of handbooks for guiding residents on procedures and rules;
- Appointing a full-time public relations officer to receive, among others, public complaints as well as facilitating prompt communication between the community and the council;
- Undertaking value-for-money audits (Matovu & Chihambakwe, 2000).
4. Enforce strict ethical and accountability standards on public service managers
52. A strict regime of ethical and professional standards must be enforced to make public services accountable and responsive to the people. Professionalism is a useful alternative to promote accountability and answerability in government. Many professions have internalized value structures, which are promulgated, inculcated and policed by the profession itself (Mosher, 1978). This set of codes of ethics place the interest of the client above that of the practitioner, and prescribe strict propriety in dealing with the interest and privacy of the client. The strict enforcement of these value structures of the professions can make public officials responsive, sensitive and accountable to the people.
5. Incorporate ethics/citizenship\civics education as part of civil service training and formal educational curriculum
53. Introducing ethics/civics education as part of the formal education curriculum and in the training programs of schools of public administration can help fight corrupt practices in public institutions. There is evidence to prove, for example, in some countries in South America, that this policy has produced some positive results in inculcating the vales of ethics and integrity in public service. It is vitally important that the corrosive effects of corruption and lack of accountability in government and public service, and in particular the debilitating effect of widespread corruption on the poor, be brought out in this exercise to educate present and future generations.
6. Institute preventive methods to combat corrupt practices and unethical values
54. It is important to use preventive methods to combat corrupt practices and unethical conduct instead of relying on measures that are usually punitive and not fully effective in tackling the problem. For example, the press is usually quick to report on maladministration: certainly, a free and responsible press utilizing investigative journalism is a powerful deterrent to misdeeds (Carstens, 1997). In addition, public prosecutors investigating offences by public officials when these offences are reported; attorney generals investigating all acts of criminal nature and judicial review of administrative decisions are alternative deterrents. Further, regular and performance audits by auditor generals can also enforce accountability; and judicial commissions of inquiry appointed at the highest levels of government can also help enforce accountability and integrity in government. All these would ensure that would-be offenders are discouraged and actual violators and offenders are discovered and disciplined.
VI. Problems of state revenue mobilization in Africa
55. State revenue mobilization processes in Africa are very much affected by corruption and unethical practices. Two explanations are offered for this phenomenon: a) the generally accepted control, management and planning purposes of government revenue budgeting are poorly served fuelling widespread corruption and loss of public resources; b) shortage of adequately trained human power, technology and institutional capacity for effective revenue generation are also equally critical problems. Consequently, there is a great deal of loss of resources in the public revenues mobilization processes.
56. Experience suggests that two factors account for poor revenue/tax collection by African states: (a) weak revenue base; and (b) lack of control over expenditures.
1. Weak revenue base
57. The most significant factor contributing to the continued fiscal fragility of African governments is the lack of progress in improving tax and non-tax revenues. The tax base for most African governments is very weak, particularly where countries are heavily dependent upon taxes on international trade. Many African countries rely heavily on exports of primary commodities; consequently, as the terms of trade fluctuate from year to year, their revenue base varies widely (Ramakrishnan, 2002)
58. Moreover, African nations do not generate enough revenue from user charges from services such as electricity, water, roads and communications. These loss-making public enterprises are a primary source of central government deficit throughout the region. Such deficits could be gradually reduced by raising user charges to levels close to marginal costs. Greater reliance on user charges would also address problems of revenue instability. With adequate safeguards, expanding the base for user charges could reduce instability of revenues because the demand for such services is much less volatile than revenue from commodity exports. Many countries have already initiated policy reforms in this area. For example, after decades of providing free health and higher education the government of Kenya announced its intention to impose substantial user charges in the national budget. After many years of free and highly subsidized college/university education, the Government of Ethiopia has announced a plan for cost sharing in the years to come.
59. A third factor contributing to weak revenue performance in Africa is the lack of indexation to domestic prices so as to offset the loss of revenue caused by collection lags in countries with high rates of inflation. The overvaluation of the domestic currency tends to shrink the tax base and reduce revenues from taxes on tradeables.
2. Lack of control over expenditures
60. African countries have generally found it extremely difficult to control the rate of growth of public expenditures, even under very restrictive fiscal conditions. Short-term revenue gains from favorable commodity export prices have been used to finance expansion of government payrolls and consumer subsidies, particularly in nations with heavy reliance on trade taxes. The resulting future commitments are extremely difficult to cut back once the revenue increase has stopped. This pattern has contributed to deficits, the sustained appreciation of real exchange rates, and accumulated chronic deficits.
61. Experience has also shown that lack of control over expenditures is the most important contributing factor to large deficits, even in countries with positive rates of economic growth. The consequences of such lack of control over public spending may be manageable with sustained rates of economic growth, or with well-developed financial management, national savings, and an expanding revenue base. However, since African nations suffer from unstable revenues, the lack of expenditure control results in fiscal deficits, which in turn exacerbate revenue shortfalls.
3. Main sources of revenue
(i) Tax collection from businesses
62. As was hinted earlier, African governments have generally a poor revenue mobilization record from business taxes. Here below, some explanations are offered.
- Static tax rates and fees
63. In Africa, business tax rates have remained static for many years and are not indexed to changing prices and values of commodities. This has meant that the real value of the revenues to be collected by the government has significantly declined due to inflation. This causes drastic revenue shortfalls thus exacerbating the budget deficit problem.
- Loss of revenue from the informal sector
64. There are tremendous revenue losses because African governments are unable to bring the informal sector of the economy into the tax net to an adequate extent and this has diminished potential revenue. In many countries, significant amount of taxes are lost due to contraband and illicit businesses and cross-border trade. In addition, failure to maintain books of account by businesses has contributed to subjective tax assessment and has opened room for corruption.
- Poor revenue collection efficiency
65. Many African governments have a poor revenue efficiency record, i.e. revenues collected fall short of what is potentially collectible. This inefficiency is ascribed to: inadequate revenue collection staff; poor salaries that do not motivate staff, poor incentives and working conditions and lack of tax compliance mechanisms. All these inadequacies generate corrupt practices by tax officials, which in turn reduce the amount of money that goes into government coffers. In addition, the inability of African governments to bring the informal business sector into the tax net to an adequate extent has also diminished potential revenue. Unwillingness on the part of the public to fulfill its tax obligations and lack of enforcement capacity to deal with tax defaulters have also contributed to poor revenue collection efforts.
(ii) Tax collection in real state
66. Tax collection in real estate in many African countries is fraught with a number of problems. These problems have given rise to widespread corruption throughout the system, which in turn has resulted in significant revenue losses for governments.
- Weak enforcement mechanisms to deal with tax defaulters
67. African governments have little or no sanction against tax defaulters on real estate property and those who fail to pay their dues to the government. The problem is compounded by the absence of appropriate and up to date records and registers about taxpayers. The poor enforcing capacity coupled with the absence of information on real estate encourages tax evasion and opens opportunities for corrupt practices by tax assessment and collection staff.
- Lack of organized data
68. Reliable and accurate data are critical for effective revenue mobilization in real estate. In many places in Africa, there is no adequate information on land and buildings, which can facilitate the collection of taxes in real state. Proper documentation is lacking and this has meant that the government cannot apply the right taxing system.
69. The inherent weakness in the system of revenue collection in real estate has meant that all potential revenue is not collected/mobilized. For example, periodic assessments and re-evaluation of commercial properties and land are rare. Information on land registration and urban houses is either scarce or in short supply. All these inadequacies will mean that tax assessment and determination will be influenced by the subjective judgment of tax personnel rather than a bona fide set of criteria determined a priori. In the final analysis, all these shortcomings in the system open up ample opportunities for corrupt practices and reduce the tax that will accrue to the government.
- Inadequate capacity for revenue mobilization
70. The revenue collection process in real estate in much of Africa is time consuming, archaic and needs a lot of improvement. It lacks proper management, supervision and control. Improving the revenue administration system and training the needed staff are required to improve the revenue mobilization and utilization performance of governments. In general, overcoming shortages of qualified human power, problems of low motivation of revenue collection and assessment personnel, archaic administrative regulations and improper staffing and placement practices in the system need to be resolved to enhance the revenue mobilization capacity of African governments in real estate.
(iii) Tax collection in customs
71. Throughout Africa, rampant corruption and unethical practices by public officials are widespread problems in tax collection in customs. Often, law enforcement agencies, such as the police and gendarmes and other law enforcement institutions, receive bribes or gifts to reduce taxes on imports and exports. This enriches the pockets of corrupt officials but deprives government coffers badly needed revenues.
72. Ethics in public service is an issue of crucial importance and the ethical qualities of individual public servants are also important. It is in the crucial work of public managers involving discretion and advice, as well as policy-making, that the ethical standards of public service assume particular significance. In a democratic political order, citizens and their representatives have the ultimate responsibility to ensure that the government promotes a heightened sense of ethics and accountability in public service delivery.
73. The values of ethics and accountability for enhanced public service delivery should be closely linked with the concept and practice of good governance. Good governance signifies the exercise of state power on the basis of legitimate authority anchored on the consent of the governed, and active participation of the citizenry in public affairs. The degree to which public service institutions embrace the values of responsiveness, accountability and integrity in responding to the needs and demands of the people is an important aspect of good governance.
74. The concern for ethics and accountability in public services is of particular significance for African countries because the problem of corruption has reached epidemic proportions affecting both governments and civil society. Africa is regarded as least able to bear its heavy costs in view of the continent's debilitating poverty. The continent's prospects for sustained growth could be wiped out by extensive and institutionalized corruption.
75. Poor compensation and reward policies for public services have generated administrative malpractices anathema to the professional and ethical standing of public services throughout the continent. Poor pay has compelled African public servants to succumb to the temptation for petty and grand fraud, such as bribes, kickbacks, and circumventing laws and regulations to aggrandize personal advantage. When public servants realize that they do no receive reasonable salaries to lead a reasonably acceptable standard of living, they resort to unconventional means of supplementing income to make ends meet.
76. Effective governmental programs to combat unethical behavior and corruption should emphasize the identification and elimination of corrupt practices, urge the understanding of political and institutional flaws and help design strategies to improve government functions. Moreover, they require the availability of public information, political leadership and collective action that involves the private sector, an independent and responsible print and electronic media, professional organizations, civil society, etc.
77. Finally, state revenue mobilization processes in Africa are very much affected by corruption and unethical practices. Poor pay and incentives for revenue collection and assessment personnel and shortage of adequately trained human power, technology and institutional capacity for effective revenue generation fuel widespread corruption and cause loss of revenue resources by African governments. An enhanced sense of ethical standards and accountability are required to curb rampant corruption in the revenue generation process in Africa.
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