Gov’t launches system to monitor progress towards performance priorities across all ministries

AMMAN — The government on Monday launched a programme titled "System for Developing the Achievement and Follow-up of Governmental Performance" in partnership with the Public Performance Development Department of the Prime Ministry, the Planning Ministry, the Civil Service Bureau (CSB) and Delegation of the European Union to Jordan represented by its M&ETA Jo2025 project, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

Funded by the EU, the new “delivery” system installed in all ministries will monitor and track the progress of key performance priorities to ensure they are delivered and implemented as planned, according to EU Jordan’s Twitter page.

Minister of State for Institutional Performance Development Yasera Ghosheh said that the programme is based on establishing a mechanism to ensure the achievement of the government's stated goals in line with best international practices for improving government performance, Petra reported. 

She said the programme will achieve its aim through the establishment of two administrative units linked to the prime minister, namely the Strategy and Decision Support Unit and the Government Achievement and Performance Unit.

Ghosheh noted that the Strategy and Decision Support Unit's goal is to support Cabinet decisions and make available all information and data required to reach the optimal decision.

The Government Achievement and Performance Unit aims to follow up on the performance of government departments and institutions regarding strategic plans and prepare periodic reports on the extent of their commitment to those plans, executive programmes and national priorities, and deliver them to the Cabinet.

Ghosheh stressed the importance of measures to institutionalise the programme by creating units linked to all ministries through their ministers or director generals, which will work in tandem with the two units at the Prime Ministry. 

She said that these linked units include the Monitoring and Impact Assessment Unit, which monitors completion indicators and their effects on a ministry level, according to Petra.

 The Performance Follow-Up Unit follows up on ministries’ executive plans to identify defects before they occur, inform ministers or director generals about these defects and make recommendations towards reform, she added.

Ghosheh noted that these second two units function as a “data bank” for each ministry or government department, as the process of transferring information and knowledge will be available to all concerned parties.

At the launch, Planning Minister Wissam Rabadi stressed the importance of building an effective system for follow-up and assessment in the public sector because of its impact on government decision-making and in preparing various economic and social programmes and plans.

He added that these plans are superseded by the government's priorities for 2020-2021 and the executive development programme, which is considered the implementation plan for the Jordan Vision 2025.

Head of the EU Delegation to Jordan Ambassador Maria Hadjitheodosiou stressed that the new performance follow-up system revolves around ensuring the achievement of the government's priorities as planned.

The EU, she added, is “proud” that the new system has taken into account the characteristics of Jordanian public administration to ensure standards of harmonisation and continuity.

Head of the CSB Sameh Nasser noted that the bureau recently developed a new internal system for civil service that includes many similarities with the government’s priorities and contributes to promoting performance improvement by linking individual performance to the goals of institutions and the government.