‘Trust elusive in govt, civil servants talks’

Government has  been facing challenges to pacify its restive workers, who are frequently demanding a review of  their working conditions as earnings are being eroded by inflation, which shot up to 256,9% last month. Business reporter Freeman Makopa (FM) caught up with Labour and Social Welfare minister Paul Mavima (PM, pictured) to discuss various issues, including the mammoth task of finding common ground with civil servants on wages, the feasibility of free education that government has promised and the safety nets his ministry has put in place to assist vulnerable people. Below are excerpts of the interview:

FM: What strategies have to be implemented towards the achievement of NDS1 (National Development Strategy 1) goals?

PM: The main goal for social protection under NDS1 is to reduce poverty, vulnerability, redress inequality, promote inclusive growth and development of human capital for sustainable development as we head towards Vision 2030 of being an upper middle-income economy. To achieve this goal we are employing several programmes including the following: Harmonise, integrate and strengthen our social assistance programmes; expand our existing programmes and modify them to also include urban areas as studies are showing that urban vulnerability is on the increase:

Provide inclusive social protection so that no one is left behind;

Improve payment systems to ensure efficiency and timely payments;

Develop and deploy a comprehensive Social Protection Management Information System that gives us reliable data for policy development and strategic management purposes;

Develop reliable grievance handling mechanisms;

Increase resilience and capacities for shock responsiveness in our social protection programming;

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Improve coordination among the social protection stakeholders in the governmental and non-governmental realms including international development partners;

Strengthen our policy and legislative frameworks across all programmes;

Enhance sustainable livelihoods for the poor and vulnerable groups with the aim to remove citizens from social welfare rolls as they gain self-reliance and resilience;

Develop community-based feedback mechanisms to track the impact of social service delivery programmes;

Extend social protection programmes to the informal sector so as to cover as many Zimbabweans as possible in the context of the increasingly informalised economy;

Accelerate pension reforms in order to ensure long-term viability of our social protection programmes; and

Establish and implement the National Health Insurance Scheme.

• Mavima is a Cabinet minister responsible for Public Service, Labour and Social Welfare, having been appointed to that post on November 8, 2019.
•  He is a holder of a Bachelor of Science in Politics and Administration and Master of Public Administration at the University of Zimbabwe (UZ).
• He attained his PhD in Public Administration and Policy at the Florida State University, USA.
•  Between 1987-1988: Administration officer, Ministry of Public Construction and National Housing
• 1988-1990 teaching assistant, department of Political and Administrative Studies, University of Zimbabwe (UZ).
• 1990-1994 lecturer, Department of Political and Administrative Studies, UZ.
•  1994 obtained the Fulbright Fellowship of study for a PhD in Public Administration and Policy at the Florida State University.
•  1994-2000, teaching and research associate, Florida State University, USA.
•  January to August, 2000 policy analyst, Parliament of the State of Florida, USA.
• August 2000 to July 2007, assistant professor, Grand Valley State University, Michigan USA.
•  August 2007 to March 2009, associate professor of Public Administration and Policy, Grand Valley State University.
•  March 2009 to July 2013, principal director in the Office of deputy prime minister Arthur Mutambara
•  Mavima was elected as National Assembly member for Gokwe Sengwa Constituency. Gokwe South on July 31 2013.
•  September, 13, 2013, he was appointed deputy minister of Primary and Secondary Education.
•  December 2, 2017, he was appointed Minister of Primary and Secondary Education.
•  November 8, 2019 the professor was appointed as the Minister of Public Service, Labour and Social Welfare.

FM: What are you targeting to achieve as a ministry towards the attainment ofupper-middle-income status by 2030?

PM: As a Ministry, our target is to avail quality and affordable social protection services for all those in need. This covers outright social welfare to the indigent sections of our populace and ensuring that we have social protection systems that provide for viable nest eggs to all `Zimbabweans who have the capacity to contribute to their retirement or towards protecting themselves and their loved ones from life’s emergencies, such as injury at work or even death from occupational accidents.

FM: What safety nets have you implemented for the challenges facing the vulnerable?

PM: Under my ministry we have various safety nets that we are implementing and these are:

Cash transfers to the vulnerable where we are paying an equivalent of US$20 for one member households, US$35 for two-member household, US$50 for three-member household and US$65 for a household with 4+ members.

To ensure no one is food poor, government provides grain to households in need by giving 10kg per person per month. This includes households who may be food poor due to droughts or other disasters that may befall them from season to season.

Vulnerable children whose families cannot cater to their educational needs to their educational needs get support through the Basic Education Assistance Module (BEAM) programme being supported which covers school fees and examination fees and plans are under way to expand the programme to also provide uniforms and stationery.

The ministry also runs the Assisted Medical Treatment Orders (AMTO) which assists those needing specialised treatment and cannot afford. This also includes cases of health care services that may not be available in the country.

We pay per capital grants and administrative grants in support to elderly persons in institutions. This provides for their full upkeep. This is the same for children in institutions.

We provide support to persons with disabilities through procuring their prescribed assistive devices, such as wheelchairs, crutches, hearing aides and so on. We also provide fees for vocational education among other needs for people with disabilities. In addition, a revolving fund is being set up to support income generating and empowerment projects for people with disabilities. Please note that people with disabilities also benefit from all the other interventions that target vulnerable communities under the country’s food aid and cash transfer programmes.

The ministry operates under the mantra that our children are our future. As such, we make sure that children are not left behind in the social protection matrix. We support them with care and protection service.  Those living and working on the street are taken on board for reunification with their families or for placement in institutions. The institutions, like those catering to the elderly, are provided with per capita and administration grants which provide sustenance for the children. The ministry also promotes and facilitates foster parenting and adoptions. In addition, support is also given to those children in contact and in conflict with the law.

These are some of the safety nets we are providing as a Ministry and there are also other interventions spearheaded by other Ministries and we also have Development Partners that compliment Government in the provision of safety nets for our vulnerable populace. For example, the World Food Programme of the United Nations has always been a valuable partner in food deficit mitigation. Other partners such as Unicef have supported the harmonised cash transfer programmes, covering the most vulnerable districts of the country.

FM: Are you getting enough funding as a ministry to carry out your mandate? If not how much do you require?

PM: Financial resources are always limited. Looking at what we need as Ministry in relation to what is provided by Treasury, there is always a gap. We have to appreciate that the national cake has to be shared among many pressing priorities. Just to illustrate, under the 2022 Budget, we had requested about ZW$33 billion (approximately US$69 million) and we got ZW$12 billion (approximately US$25,1 million) that translates to 36% of our ideal requirement. Of note is that this amount is specifically for the various safety nets we implement as a Ministry.

So, you can tell that this is inadequate. However, we have Development Partners coming in to try and close the gap.

For the NDS1 period, you may want to take note that social protection requires the following amounts: –

Year   Requirement USD$

2021   $89,114,350

2022   $137,979,876

2023   $167,084,470

2024   $227,532,941

2025   $279,816,726

Total   $901,528,363

FM: Government has since announced that next year there will be free education, is this feasible?

PM: Steps are already underway to provide free education and this will be done progressively. Already we are looking forward to supporting 1,5 million learners through BEAM this year. Like already indicated, the BEAM has moved towards more comprehensive coverage of the needs of learners beyond tuition fees. This has been an important step towards attainment of state funded basic education. Indeed, the State has indicated that there will be more comprehensive coverage of this matter under the 2023 budget.

FM: How do you think is the best way to harmonise the relationship between civil servants and the government?

PM: The best way to harmonise the relationship between civil servants and the Government is to ensure continuous engagement between Government and the workers through the National Joint Negotiating Council platform, Tripartite Negotiating Forum and other social dialogue platforms. As the fiscal space improves, the `Government should consistently improve the working conditions of civil servants in order to motivate optimal performance in the delivery of all public services. That way, the attainment of the country’s `Vision 2030’ will be better assured.

FM: What are the challenges likely to be faced in trying to harmonise the relationship?

PM: The major challenge likely to be faced is the issue of mistrust between parties. The issue of negotiations and collective bargaining requires sincerity from both ends. There should also be the management of expectations so that moderation can be achieved in the demands that workers make. Such moderation provides space for the nation to deliver services while growing the national cake. In the end, everyone benefits as the country achieves inclusive growth and prosperity.

FM: What was the outcome of the TNF meeting which was held in Mutare last month?

PM: The TNF Technical Committee meeting held in Mutare from July 20-22 2022 deliberated on pertinent issues currently affecting our economy. These issues include the erosion of salaries, dual currency and multiple exchange rates as well as prices stabilisation.  The social partners agreed that a main TNF should then be held to discuss the report and make recommendations to Cabinet. The TNF partners are on the same page in their desire to see the conclusion of a social contract, so that Zimbabwe can move together in unison towards achieving the prosperity that we all want.

FM: Workers have since threatened to hold an industrial action, what plan do you have in place to address the workers’ grievances?

PM: Engagements with workers on conditions of service are ongoing. On August 1, we held a meeting with workers together with the Minister of Finance and we hope to keep engaging workers until we find middle ground.

FM: How far are you with the Labour Amendment Bill?

PM: The Labour Bill was gazetted late last year and the minister presented his first reading speech. The Parliamentary Legal Committee presented their report to parliament. Currently the minister is waiting to present his second reading speech.

FM: Can you please share with us progress made on the Productivity Bill?

PM: The Bill was peer reviewed in May 2022 and was submitted to the Cabinet Committee on Legislation. We should be taking it to Parliament soon after the cabinet processes are completed.

FM: How far are you with the investigations at Nssa, which includes allegations that they sponsored a strategic meeting in Kenya at a time pensioners are struggling to make ends meet?

PM: The allegations of malfeasance at Nssa are undergoing comprehensive investigations involving various state agencies. We want to ensure the nation that we will leave no stone unturned in ensuring that any criminal activity is unearthed and any culprits are brought to book. The nation will be informed of outcomes of the investigations as they get concluded.