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The outcomes approach
25 October 2010
Summary
The outcomes approach is embedded in and a direct resultant of the electoral mandate. Contained below is a summary of the process that contextualises the Cabinet approved outcomes.
Step 1: The Ruling Party’s election manifesto identified five priority areas: decent work and sustainable livelihoods, education, health, rural development, food security and land reform and the fight against crime and corruption.
Step 2: Development of the Medium Term Strategic Framework which is an expression of government’s Programme of Action where ten strategic priority areas were identified.
Step 3: Development of twelve Key Outcomes, with accompanying outputs and strategic activities and metrics.
Step 4: Development and signing of Performance Agreements between the President and Ministers, which outline high level outputs, metrics and key and contributing activities towards each outcome.
Step 5: Conversion of high level outputs and metrics into a detailed Delivery Agreement with key partners that need to work together to achieve the outputs. The negotiated Agreement spells out who will do what by when and with what resources.
Step 6: Establishment of effective coordinating structures to ensure that key partners of the Delivery Agreements work together to achieve the outputs. These structures would coordinate the implementation of the outcomes, reviewing progress and deciding on interventions when required. These structures would also conduct monitoring & evaluation of the degree to which the outcomes are being achieved, which will provide a feedback loop to annual reviews of the Delivery Agreements.
Outcomes
The Cabinet Lekgotla (which is a regular executive planning session) held from 20 to 22 January 2010 adopted the following 12 Outcomes:
The President has signed performance agreements with all 34 Cabinet Ministers. In these performance agreements, Ministers were requested to establish an Implementation Forum for each of the twelve outcomes. In each implementation forum Ministers and all other parties responsible for delivering on an outcome, will develop a Delivery Agreement. All departments, agencies and spheres of government involved in the direct delivery process required to achieve an output, should be party to the agreement.
The Delivery Agreement will refine and provide more detail to the outputs, targets, indicators and key activities for each outcome, and identify required inputs and clarify roles and responsibilities. It will spell out who will do what, by when and with what resources.
Delivery Agreements will further unpack each outcome and each output and the requirements to reach the targets. Aspects that will be described in detail include the legislative and regulatory regime, the institutional environment and decision-making processes and rights, the resources needed and re-allocation of resources where appropriate.
Understanding the logic model
Government needs to go beyond the work that we do and interrogate the impact that it has. This approach involves management using a logic model which links inputs, activities, outputs outcomes and impacts. The triangle below demonstrates these links more clearly:
It becomes useful to standardise the use of the following terms:
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