Public service digitisation challenges

 As Malawi looks forward to 2063, it is clear that digitalisation is one key enabler to this great vision of the country.

Malawi cannot afford to lag behind in digitalisation, as the world is now experiencing the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR) which is characterised by the fusion of digital and physical worlds, as well as the growing utilisation of new digital technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI), cloud computing, robotics, 3D printing, the Internet of Things and advanced wireless technologies, among others.

Indeed, various sectors of the economy in Malawi, whether public or private sector cannot afford to continue with manual processes which affect operational efficiency and effectiveness.

Digital transformation, on the other hand, can promote economic growth and structural transformation, hence contributing to poverty reduction among communities and the nation at large.

It is from this perspective that we can reflect what has been achieved so far as a country with respect to digitalisation on one hand and public service delivery, on the other hand.

It is encouraging to note that various government institutions are using digital systems in one way or the other in their service delivery.

For example, the Directorate of Road Traffic and Safety Services (DRTSS) has been using the Malawi Traffic Information System (Maltis) for some time now for processing drivers’ licence cards, vehicle registration and certificate of fitness, among other things.

Similarly, the Registrar General’s office has been using the Malawi Business Registration System (MBRS) to remove business registration bottlenecks that have also been contributing to poor rankings in the Ease of Doing Business Index for Malawi.

These are just few examples of systems that have been rolled out by government in order to improve public service delivery.

It is also quite encouraging that the private sector has also embraced digital technologies. The proliferation of mobile money, digital banking apps, etc is also a big step in the right direction.

However, one thing that is clear is that introduction of these digital systems has not necessarily improved public service delivery.

For example, one is not guaranteed efficient services at DRTSS despite Maltis being operational for quite a number of years now.

It is the usual “network yathawa problem” that services that could take less than an hour to be completed, take days to be done. This in turn frustrates citizens leading to a fertile breeding ground for corruption in a bid to quickly access services.

Similarly, with the MBRS, one would expect that within a day or two, their business will be registered after submission of the required documents. But the reality is that this is not usually the case.

Without ‘pushing’, one can wait indefinitely to receive feedback on their application. Is this not defeating the purpose of digitalisation? Obviously, it is not the systems that are buggy but stages in the systems which require human intervention become bottlenecks in the whole process.

This means that the human element in digitalisation initiatives needs to be paid serious attention to.

Studies have shown that, globally, a significant number of digital transformation initiatives fail because organisations do not adequately account for the human factor in digital systems.

As digital technology brings change into an organisation, the organisation itself should thoroughly prepare itself to manage the change as people naturally resist change.

On the onset of any digital transformation project, for example, officers should be psychologically prepared that a digitalisation is mainly about improving customer experience and in this case, improving citizen experience when accessing government services.

As such, managing this mindset change is key to the success of a digital transformation initiative.

Another crucial human factor is engagement and empowerment of officers through proper training of officers both technically as well as on ethical values as they use the systems for service delivery.

It is imperative that the officers understand and appreciate the important role they take as they are a face of government as they use the systems to serve citizens.

In short, the success of any digital transformation initiative largely hinges on human factors.

In other words, public service delivery through these systems can only improve if the human factor is properly addressed. It is not simply just about introducing the technology.—Cprds.Mw