SENIOR EXECUTIVE PROGRAM--PROFILE OF MR. GODFREY MOKATE
Chief Director for Local Government Development and Support with the Department of Provincial and Local Government (previously the Director for Training Policy Development, South African Department of Public Service and Administration)

"Learning comes from talking and talking from interaction," said Godfrey Mokate at the December 1998 conclusion of South Africa's first Senior Executive Programme (SEP), conducted jointly by Harvard and WITS Business Schools. The Director of Training in Policy Development for South Africa's Department of Public Service and Administration strongly advocates the need for dialogue and collaboration between government, business and public sector leaders to build democracy and expand economic opportunities in South Africa. Mokate describes the synergy as "Leaders at Change".

Mokate credits the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) in South Africa for sponsoring his participation in the SEP that gave him his first exposure to problem-solving through a cross-sectoral approach. He said that USAID's willingness to support the costs to send him and 22 other public sector students (including chief directors and deputy director generals) to the intensive practical case study course has changed the way he tackles government business.

Godfrey's story is, in his own words, the story of many black South Africans. He comes from a working class background where his family provided manual labour in factories to support their children, sisters and brothers. They were products of Bantu education, trained in low-level basics for blue collar jobs. The legacy has caused severe problems in a post-apartheid South Africa where skills levels for management and other employable positions are often lacking. Particularly, according to Godfrey, in the black population.

He was fortunate enough to learn English through ardent debates at the plant at which he worked, concurrently pursuing studies for a job that would wield more impact in his country of birth.

Godfrey's diligence paid off. He gained responsibilities within South Africa's first democratic government to develop training and education policy, along with managing the implementation of such policies, for public service staff. The challenges of such a position were staggering, considering the skills dearth that Godfrey has highlighted amongst the black population. Civil service posts in South Africa carry the added stigma of having provided "sheltered" employment in the past when such jobs were reserved for whites, who often had sparse education.

Godfrey spent four intense weeks during 1998 upgrading his own abilities to handle the tasks with utmost competence. The Director General of his department had asked him to consider the merits of a new senior executive program, developed especially for South Africa, by lecturers from Harvard and WITS Business Schools.

Godfrey had never seen such a proposal before. The concept required that the class be composed of top leaders from not only government departments, but also directors from business and public enterprise. Case studies would be tackled from international experiences and actual South African scenarios. Godfrey saw immediate advantages from the combined approach and agreed to "put my head on the block".

The expense of developing a high level development programme was addressed by USAID to sponsor South Africa's government leaders nominated to the course. USAID agreed to support one-third of the cost of the SEP by sponsoring 70 public sector participants across three cohorts. USAID was the only funder of government students. Harvard granted eight scholarships in other sectors. The United States Agency for International Development additionally made contributions to the course content.

The first cohort attracted 63 participants from across the scope of Southern Africa's movers and shakers in business, government and public enterprise. Four participants from Zimbabwe and one from Zambia also joined the course. One might have expected an adversarial explosion by assembling leaders from the South African Reserve Bank, Deloitte and Touche, Eskom, Telkom, Mondi Paper, the Department of Agriculture, Black Management Forum, Independent Complaints Directorate, Planact, South African Post Office, National Union of Mineworkers, SAPPI, the Department of Trade and Industry, Office of the State President, Standard Bank, Independent Newspapers (KwaZulu/Natal) and Metropolitan Councillors. What developed, instead, was a highly electric atmosphere of complementary interaction and debate that focused on joint solutions to the problems posed by each case study. Modules included a wide range of relevant subjects, such as negotiations, operations and corporate ethics. Reports from governmental students indicate they are able to apply the lessons directly in their daily jobs.

USAID Mission Director for South Africa, W. Stacy Rhodes, said that his Agency shared the view of many South Africans that "strengthening public and private management is a top priority for South Africa's development". He explained that "Many new government policies are in place¼many new investments are being considered and made¼many programs are now in-or are entering-the implementation phase and there is a growing focus on the need for effective delivery." President Thabo Mbeki' places heavy emphasis on the need to deliver with this cabinet. Rhodes said that one of the most critical elements for effective delivery is creative, effective management.

The Senior Executive Program is supported under USAID's Democracy and Governance team that seeks to strengthen institutions that promote and build democratic institutions and practices.