PERMANENT SECRETARY APPEARS AT JIS’ THINK TANK SESSION

Dr. Alwin Hales addressing 'Think Tank' session at JIS recently. Others in the picture clockwise are Mrs. Elsa-May Binns, Senior Director, Policy Planning and Evaluation, Mr. Shawn Grey, Director, Corporate Planning and Performance Mangement, Mrs. Lovern Hayes-Brown, Public Relations Officer, JIS and Leo McEwan, Public Relations Officer, MTW.

Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Transport and Works, Dr. Alwin Hales made a presentation on the Ministry’s modernisation thrust at the Jamaica Information Service’s (JIS) ‘Think Tank’ Session on Wednesday, November 23. The session was held at the JIS Head Office at 58A Half Way Tree Road.

In a wide ranging presentation, Dr. Hales chronicled the various elements which comprised the modernisation process and the benefits that have accrued as a result. He said that the modernisation of the public service was ‘an effort on the part of Government to improve the way in which Agencies/Entities in the public domain dispense their services, to reduce central control and delegate authority to the Chief Executive Officers and Permanent Secretaries in the various Government institutions.’ He explained that the Ministry of Transport and Works was one of three pilot Ministries selected for the modernisation process and that the project was funded by the Government of Jamaica (GoJ), the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development, the British Department for International Development as well as the European Union.

Within the Ministry of Transport and Works, he said that modernisation resulted in the formation of the National Works Agency (NWA) which succeeds the former Public Works Department (PWD). It (modernisation) also left the Core Ministry to deal with Policy in an effort to create a more performance driven organisation in which management and staff are motivated and equipped to deliver target standards of service for the Government.

In highlighting some of the benefits of modernisation the Ministry, he asserted that the most significant change was the introduction of the Policy Planning and Evaluation Directorate to the entity’s organisational structure. That Directorate consists of the Corporate Planning and Performance Monitoring Unit, The Technical Services Unit, the Policy Unit and the New Initiatives and Special Projects Unit. In terms of Human Resource Management, the Permanent Secretary has been delegated responsibility to appoint, promote, transfer, discipline and dismiss staff. The Core Ministry also has the responsibility to establish posts and fix remuneration packages. The modernisation process has additionally seen the introduction of the Employee Performance and Appraisal System to the Ministry. This is a system where job performance is assessed against set standards agreed on between employees and supervisors. This was implemented on April 1, 2004.

One of the most important pronouncements by Dr. Hales concerned the fact that plans are fast advanced for the modernisation of the Island Traffic Authority (ITA). This I scheduled to come on stream by April 2006.

Under this new dispensation, the role, functions and accountability of the ITA will be redefined. Activities related to the inspection of motor vehicle and certification of imported vehicles are expected to be transferred to a private entity while the remaining duties within the Authority will be modernised. It is anticipated that appropriate administrative and management policies, systems and procedures will be implemented and key baseline data collected so as to properly define, monitor and report on the core business outputs, which form the basis of the Agency’s existence and its contribution to the GOJ’s economic and social outcomes.

Other areas of the modernisation project include that of air transport, (the Civil Aviation Authority and the privatisation of the Sangster International Airport and plans to do the same with Norman Manley International); Marine Transport with the Port Authority of Jamaica (PAJ) and the Maritime Authority of Jamaica doing major work. Legislative Acts, in particular the Transport Authority Act and the Road Traffic Act have also been amended in furtherance of the modernisation process.