Administrative Streamlining in Sudan
By: Waleed Daleel – Banking Expert
The Minister of Federal Governance, Engineer Mohamed Kortekila Saleh, recently issued a decision to merge several ministries at the state level. This move aims to reduce financial and administrative burdens amidst Sudan’s economic, political, and security challenges, while implementing directives from the Sovereignty Council to form lean state governments.
The decision included merging the Ministries of Finance, Investment, Agriculture, Industry, Livestock, and Labor into a single ministry. Additionally, the Ministries of Education, Infrastructure, Religious Affairs, Youth, and Sports were combined into the Ministry of Education and Services. Similarly, Health, Social Welfare, Zakat, Health Insurance, Pensions, and Humanitarian Assistance were consolidated into one ministry.
Administrative reform is guided by a philosophy that requires clear concepts and objectives. It involves diagnosing problems and their causes, translating them into specific goals, selecting programs to achieve these goals, and evaluating the outcomes.
The concept of “administrative shadow reduction” focuses on alleviating administrative burdens by defining specific tasks for designated entities. This allows those managing these entities to maintain effective control—not through authority but by optimizing available resources, both material and human. The goal is to meet quality requirements swiftly and achieve set objectives, whether the entity in question is service-oriented or production-focused. Both require lean administrative structures that prioritize specialization and avoid bureaucratic excess, which is often linked to expanding responsibilities, overlapping tasks, and conflicting functions.
If administrative reform means dismantling some ministries, separating institutions, or merging others, Sudan has experimented with this approach over four decades. The results have included declining performance, reduced productivity, and significant increases in government costs borne by taxpayers.
Administrative reform should focus on addressing deficiencies in the capacity and knowledge of departments and staff. It should aim to improve their performance, enhance their ability to serve the public, foster professional development, and deter corrupt individuals from mishandling public issues while encouraging excellence.
The reform process should prioritize defining the strategic objectives of the economic vision and building administrative systems capable of achieving and executing those objectives.
Moreover, reform requires adopting a strategy that ensures the selection of the best individuals for public service roles, establishing criteria for promotions, and defining clear qualifications for those assuming administrative positions in government departments and ministries.
Progress in administrative reform hinges on addressing three main areas:
1. Simplifying Procedures: Making service delivery easier and treating citizens requesting services as clients who must be satisfied or partners in development. The outputs of administrative entities should be viewed as products, emphasizing quality, precision, and performance evaluation from the consumer’s perspective rather than the service provider’s.
2. Combating Administrative Corruption: Efforts must be made to minimize corruption as much as possible. This is a key outcome that citizens expect from administrative reform.
By focusing on these pillars, Sudan can move closer to achieving a more efficient and effective administrative system that better serves its citizens.
