Turnaround Strategy Briefing of Portfolio Committee on Home Affairs & Select Committee on Social Services 24 February 2004

Overview Outlines the challenges facing DHA Discusses the elements of the turnaround strategy Highlights the funding implications

The DG’s Crash Course Reading, meetings, discussions Visits to departmental units Visits to provinces Visits to Consular Offices Meetings with counterparts Visited: –29 regional offices –32 district offices –14 service points –3 MPCCs –16 ports of entry –5 refugee reception centres –Lindela

Overriding Impressions DHA critical to Government’s delivery agenda, national security and crime prevention and combating DHA is a window to government and SA DHA is chronically under-resourced –Not about more to do more –About having resources to do basics Need a decisive turnaround strategy

People TechnologyInfrastructure Critical Capacity Requirements

Personnel Approved establishment – 7,499 posts –Developed in 1995 when effects of democracy could not be measured 5,843 posts filled 370 vacancies funded 1,200 volunteers –R40 per day –Exploitation –Not vetted 58 contract workers Business study – twice as many posts needed

Infrastructure DHA offices typify dark days of apartheid –badly located –dilapidated –understaffed –insecure –under-equipped –inadequate transport

Technology Living in IT pre-history Systems and business processes manual and paper- based –No internal , no network collaboration Offices and border posts not connected to mainframe PR and MCS need rewrite Network infrastructure needs upgrading Internal IT capacity inadequate – rely on consultants SITA service inadequate

HANIS HANIS in crisis Chief Director IT, Director and Deputy Director HANIS resigned Dept at mercy of consortium and consultants Decisions unmade, postponed, wrongly made Progress –Nearly 2 million records –Duplicates detected –Applications of illegals detected HANIS vision lost 3 critical challenges –Live capture –Conversion of paper records –New ID card

People Technology Key Interventions Immigration Civic Services Corruption & Security Budgeting & Procurement Legal Services Communication Regions & Foreign Offices International Relations Info Management GPW Leadership & Management Infrastructure Service Delivery Integr Gov

Immigration Control Of 5,843 filled posts –979 for immigration Of 370 funded vacancies –68 for immigration offices

Immigration Control DHA present at 57 ports of entry Critical shortage of immigration officers IT systems inadequate MCS updated manually No telephones, faxes etc. at some border posts Glaring comparison to SARS at Beit Bridge

Immigration Control Immigration branch is law enforcement agency Immigration capacity characterised by: –No proper central command –Inadequate training –Inadequately equipped –Immigration officers ranked below counterparts US Immigration biggest law enforcement agency in country Challenge – transforming Immigration Service into properly organised, trained, equipped and staffed law enforcement agency –Draw on assistance of community in SA and counterparts abroad

Management of Refugees Five refugee reception centres –Understaffed, under-equipped, pressured IT system collapsed Refugees on streets while waiting for application Backlog in tens of thousands Refugee system easy way to bypass normal immigration controls

Management of Illegal Foreigners Lindela –Severely understaffed –Immigration officers process intake and accompany deportees –No IT system –Rife with corruption Number of immigration officers to trace and arrest pitiful In some districts only one Immigration Officer ‘Revolving Door’ syndrome One of DHA’s biggest challenges

Civic Services Apartheid history led to many citizens not being registered Had to allow for late registration of births and amendments to Population Register Major ID and birth registration campaigns Necessary interventions to redress past wrongs Interventions created loopholes Major challenge – balance between realities of apartheid legacy and integrity of citizenship Problem of fraudulent marriages Business processes totally outdated

Corruption Two types of corruption – criminal and convenience DHA prime target of syndicates and criminals – provide an essential service Corrupting pressures will always be there Convenience corruption –G–Get better service by ‘greasing our palms’ –M–Makes DHA officials easier prey for criminal corruption

Security NIA produced damning report on security in DHA State of security in DHA is dismal – physical, information, IT and personnel security Situation at Head Office improved Security in provinces very bad Has direct impact on corruption

Service Delivery Home Affairs committed to Batho Pele Some shining examples of improved service delivery The reality: –Chronic understaffing –Poor office location –Dingy offices –No computers –No transport –No basic equipment and amenities Unable to meet requirements of Batho Pele

Service Delivery Lack of resources not the only problem In Home Affairs the customer is always wrong! –Attitude that client not entitled to services until they prove they are –Clients sent back and forth Problem of Head Office service delivery –Slow –Inefficient –Bureaucratic

Budgeting & Procurement General complaint by managers that they never get the funding they requested Key problem: Bottom-up budgeting Effective expenditure monitoring lacking BAS to be rolled out nationally Provisioning lacks capacity

Funding Funding is the overriding challenge –2003/04 allocation – R1,9 billion –MTEF baseline allocation – R2,1 billion rising to R2,5 billion in Year 3 DHA requested R3,3 billion rising to R3,8 billion Final allocation R2,3 billion in 2004/05, increasing to R2,7 billion in 2005/06, and decreasing to R2,4 billion in 2006/07

Funding Staffing –MTEC allowed for no increase in staffing above 300 in allocation for 2004/05 –Additional 500 posts allowed for Years 2 & 3 Received sympathetic hearing from Treasury –But fiscal constraints –Anxiety on DHA’s ability to absorb additional resources No hope for all the funding we need over next three years although Cabinet has already agreed that the transformation of the Immigration Branch in particular should be prioritised over the MTEF

Turnaround Strategy Critical challenges have been highlighted These issues not really new New DG confirms situation even worse than thought Senior management teambuilding devised turnaround strategy Covers range of interventions

Turnaround Strategy Personnel –Implement proposed organisational structure –Project to develop short to long-term personnel recruitment and replenishment strategy –Speed up filling of management posts – including 3 DDG posts –Strengthen internal training capacity –Develop esprit de corps –Phase out volunteers end financial year

Turnaround Strategy Infrastructure –Audit of all offices re location, condition and equipment –List of worst offices for emergency attention –Master plan to replenish and extend vehicle fleet Technology –IT Lekgotla held to develop overall strategy for fully- computerised Department (IT Ingwe) –ISMB established –Project teams put in place

Back-end: Fully integrated biometric data base of all persons that Department deals with, e.g. citizens, visitors, refugees and illegal foreigners Will incorporate all Department’s systems: Population Register, Movement Control System, Passport System, Refugee System, Visa System & Illegals Database Has the potential of not only dramatically improving service delivery, but will also notably increase security community’s capacity to detect illegal foreigners and to combat fraudulent acquisition of IDs, passports and other documents such as birth and marriage certificates At front-end will be the Integrated Client Service Console at all the Department’s service points Turnaround Strategy

Electronic Document Management & Workflow System –Will allow all service delivery processes to be managed on-line –Will limit manual intervention in processes thus lowering possibility of fraud & corruption –Will include a review of all service delivery processes Enterprise Resource Management –Software to be acquired to improve electronic management of financial & human resources and assets Browser-based Systems –Common front-end to be developed for all the Dept’s systems –Will ensure integration with other e-govt initiatives Enterprise Systems –Need to design and implement department-wide platforms & communications capabilities in accordance with MSP IT Security –Measures to be taken to ensure data integrity Information Management –Address Dept’s info requirements in integrated & holistic way –Will help to monitor turnaround times in key processes & facilitate decision-making Turnaround Strategy

Policies & Procedures –Standards to be developed on proper utilisation of IT infrastructure Service Management & Support –Contract management & service level monitoring capacity to be developed Change Management –Staff to be prepared & to be provided the skills they need to make the transition from the old to the new Turnaround Strategy

Immigration Control –Workshop held to plan total transformation of Immigration Service - results incorporated into restructuring proposals –Project team formed to define in more detail the personnel & logistical requirements Refugees –Interim database being developed –Project to train Refugee Status Determination Officers –Look for partners to assist with backlog

Turnaround Strategy Illegal foreigners –Will introduce ICSC at Lindela as one of ITingwe “quick wins” –Intensifying discussions with counterparts in neighbouring countries Fraudulent citizenship –Have taken a number of decisions to deal with the fraudulent acquisition of Home Affairs documents –Includes review of the system of marriage officers & late registration of births –Also attending to delays in critical areas whilst business process review is under way

Turnaround Strategy Corruption –Working with intelligence and enforcement community to tackle corrupting syndicates –Needs holistic approach - being led by NIA –Re-design of IT and processes –Improve morale and working conditions –Educate and motivate DHA officials –Deal with public attempting to bribe our officials and officials seeking bribes –Improve service delivery –Chief Directorate to be established that will focus on both counter- corruption and security

Turnaround Strategy Security –Revamping security capacity –To appoint Security Manager –Upgrade of Civitas in process –Finalised MOU with NIA on vetting –Project on MISS and information security –Finalise security policy

Turnaround Strategy Service Delivery –National ‘customer is always right’ Campaign –Institute national standard for signage, workflow, queue management –Establishment of 24-hour Client Services Centre

Conclusion DHA been through difficult period –Two DGs in relatively quick succession –Tension between former DG and Minister –Delay in appointing new DG –Experienced managers left –High turnover in all levels of Department –Morale low The turnaround has begun! Please support us