Austere measures to curb wastage

Government has imposed a number of cost-cutting measures for the public sector, in line with its intention to cut spending, as treasury buckles under financial strain. The new measures include curbing spending on travelling, newspapers, as well as the attending and hosting of conferences, among others. The administrative directive, signed off by prime minister Saara Kuugongelwa-Amadhila, comes just days after President Hage Geingob banned political office-bearers from travelling outside the country this month. Geingob, who flew with a scheduled commercial flight to attend the African Union summit in Addis Ababa recently, announced last week that ministers, deputy ministers and other public office-bearers will not be allowed to travel outside the country in February, in order to rein in spending. Subsequent to Geingob's announcement, a number of cost-cutting measures have now been made public, with government limiting air travel in business class for senior government officials. Qualifying members will only be allowed to travel business class when it comes to long-haul flights. Permanent secretaries will now also have to get approval from the secretary to cabinet and line minister, before going on official trips. “Travel abroad by a delegation should not exceed two staff members. Any delegation with more than two staff members requires special consideration by the secretary to cabinet, in consultation with the minister,” read the directive. “If applicable, local and international travel by an individual staff member shall be capped, and shall not exceed two trips outside the country per year and three trips within the country. Exceptions shall be considered and approved by the permanent secretaries or accounting officers on merit.” According to the new measures, no office, ministry or government agency may buy new vehicles, unless approved by the secretary to cabinet. “Government vehicles must be parked at 17:00 at the office or officially designated parking place. Assigning of vehicles for official use after hours to individual staff members shall only be done for essential services.” New appointments The new measures also include the freezing of non-essential civil servant posts, while the ministry of finance is expected to issue new guidelines for capping personnel expenditure. “The creation of new posts shall not be allowed unless it is on account of compensatory reductions and based on a workload assessment,” read the directive. “Posts that remain vacant for more than six months should be abolished and or may be given up for compensatory reductions. Filling of vacancies should be done with approval of the secretary to cabinet and will be approved when it is critical for the performance of the OMA (office, ministry or agency).” S&T abuse Permanent secretaries will now also have discretionary powers to determine the most suitable and economical rate for daily subsistence allowances for official travelling. “Permanent secretaries shall decide on whether to pay directly to the accommodation establishment or to the staff member, whichever is the most economical option.” Government has also announced that it will limit participation at trade fairs. “Participation by OMAs at various trade fairs should be restricted and limited to trade fairs adding significant value to the performance of the respective institution. Participation in trade fairs should be limited to staff members, where the OMA has offices in those regions.” HR audits Government said it will also start implementing human resources audits, in order to weed out possible ghost workers. These annual reports will be submitted to the secretary to cabinet. Ministries and other government agencies have also been implored to do away with unnecessary meetings and the conducting of workshops. “Conduct meetings where possible, through video or telephone conferencing to reduce travelling and loss of production time. Institute paperless meetings to protect the environment and reduce cost.” Government employees have also been urged to make use of email facilities, to reduce the printing of letters, photocopying and the delivery of documents. Government will also stop the purchasing of newspapers for staff members, with effect from 1 April 2018.STAFF REPORTER

Austere measures to curb wastage

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Namibian Sun 2026-05-11

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Austere measures to curb wastage

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Namibian Sun 2026-05-11

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