Public Administration Reform, General Secretary Speaks

The Kosovo Assembly during yesterday's session has voted in principle the Public Administration Reform Package, the Bill for Salaries, Organising State Administration of Independent Age and the Bill for Public Officials, respectively.

With the public sector wage bill, state officials will not enjoy high wages that were raised months ago with the government's decision. This is because the new bill creates the homogenic wage system for all employees in the public sector.

Secretary General at the Ministry of Public Administration Arton Berisha for Indexline has said this legal package sets the pillars for organisation and functioning of the state.

According to him, the three laws are essential to solving problems so far in the wage system, overhaul of state administration and performance of employees in the public sector.

“The Law for Organising and Functioning of State Administration and Independent Agencies aims to create the co-ordination legal framework for creation, direction, management, accountability and performance of administration and agencies. This law sets out clear rules for the entire ministerial system and simple typeology that ensures adequate organisation and also clear lines of accountability for agencies. The law sets rules that define functions for which independent agencies may or may not be created. Furthermore, the law sets out interior organisation rules for all bodies of state administration in determining: internal structures, levels, organograms, the report of internal structures with the Secretary General and Minister, the act with which internal organisation and its content are defined, and the competence for the adoption of internal organisation. The law also envisions the Government of Kosovo within three years making a functional review of all central and independent bodies with clear options for rationalising them”, Berisha has said.

While in terms of the wage law, Berisha says he will define the wage and compensation system for officials and public officials, as well as rules for setting salaries of public enterprise employees.

The Law on Salaries will solve a serious problem that we have in place with public sector wage regulation, where there is actually chaos in the regulatory framework, where besides the civil servants' salary law, we have close to 58 sublaws and government decisions regulating the wage issue. The law when passed will be applied to all public employees. The law creates a homogenic wage system for all employees in the public sector. The law also sets minimum rules for the salaries of employees in public enterprises. The new regulations are aimed at creating a transparent and equal wage system by living up to the same salary principle for the same work”, Berisha has said, among other things.

For the Law for Public Officials, however, some differ in the process of recruiting into civil service.

Berisha says this law will establish a merit-based recruiting system and professional management.

Recruitment to civil service after law enforcement or to be done through group recruiting, which will serve the entry of the professional level to executive institutions. A central unit will be established responsible for developing group recruiting under the Ministry of Public Administration, as well as permanent selective commissions. The law also completed the legal framework for discipline in civil service in order to strengthen accountability within the civilian service as an instrument to sanction violations”, Berisha stressed.

Otherwise, the Ministry of Public Administration will lead the process of implementing this package.

This legal package is being seen as an opportunity to empower the state administration that appreciates the work and recruits and advances personnel on the merit. /Indesksonline/.