Strategy as an anchor to national planning
FOR Zimbabwe’s economic transformation to succeed, a robust strategy acting as an anchor is indispensable.
THIS strategy must clearly define objectives, action plans and implementation timelines, while addressing obstacles like corruption, bureaucracy and inconsistent policies.
The Government has laid out a comprehensive roadmap, including sector-specific strategies and frameworks to steer the nation towards Vision 2030.
Monitoring and evaluation mechanisms are in place to track progress and ensure accountability, reinforcing the strategy’s role as a steadfast anchor.
Understanding national planning processes
Incorporating development objectives into Government-led structures necessitates a deep understanding of the planning landscape. This involves identifying the key components of policy, planning mechanisms and actors involved. Think of the national planning process as constructing a building.
Just as a building requires a foundation, materials and a blueprint, national planning needs a solid base of policies, plans and collaboration of various stakeholders to achieve a structurally sound and purposeful outcome.
Defining a successful anchor strategy
For an anchor strategy to be successful, it must resonate with and be deeply embedded in the institution’s core activities.
Anchors must be proactive and engage with the community to reap mutual benefits.
Imagine a ship anchored in a harbour; the anchor must be strong enough to hold the ship in place against currents and tides, just as a solid strategy must anchor the nation’s economic efforts against challenges and shifting dynamics.
While anchors have had much success, it goes without saying that it is demanding and onerous to craft a true anchor strategy that has real impact on a nation.
Anchor institutions typically pursue a self-interest path on which they are not attuned to community needs and are not inclined to identify new, win-win propositions on their own.
Anchor institutions must be willing to do the work in interacting and working more closely with the community in order to see the true benefits.
In some instances, because anchor institutions have not effectively engaged with the community, the resulting decision-making processes, internal structure and other adaptive behaviours make effective engagement even more challenging.
Anchors are risk-averse organisations which are slow to change or take on new roles to succeed and grow over time.
They typically rely on traditional practices to succeed.
Therefore, embarking on an anchor strategy represents a more difficult step than simply figuring out how to engage with the community.
It means making a fundamental change in the way an anchor thinks and operates.
Before we look at how to change the way an anchor engages with its community, it helps to understand how they currently operate and why it is so hard to move an anchor from comfortable, time-tested ways of doing business.
Restructuring the national development plan
Governments draw up national development plans and strategies based on, among other things:
◆ Size of the economy in terms of gross domestic product (GDP) and other relevant measurement criteria.
◆ Perceived needs of the populace, such as health, education, communication and infrastructure.
◆ Priorities of citizens. Sometimes, this can be as simple as provision of potable water or as complex as moving from carbon-based technology to green energy.
Time frames on national planning
National development plans typically have five- to 10-year spans, though ultimately, it depends on the outcomes desired and the scale and scope of resources available.
It may not be necessary to have long visions that do not yield anything or short ones that truncate necessary milestones.
National development plans typically must clearly outline:
◆ Desired outcomes to be achieved;
◆ Build consensus on the obstacles to and opportunities for achieving those outcomes; ◆ Define the role and contribution of different stakeholders in achieving the outcomes; and
◆ Provide a strategic framework within which more detailed planning and budgeting can take place at regular intervals.
Focus of national development plans
National development plans tend to focus on economic growth (GDP), infrastructure, service provision, job creation and poverty reduction.
Consequently, these plans incorporate targets that address rates of employment and poverty levels.
Government structures, a national planning commission or line ministries prepare five-year economic or national development plans as a means to achieve a long-term vision.
Economic line ministries such as those for finance, industry, international relations and regional integration or agencies responsible for national development planning will invariably play a key role.
These plans articulate the Government’s economic, social and environmental priorities, and, in turn, influence the areas of cooperation and support provided by Government partners, including donors, inter-government institutions, the private sector and civil society.
How do stakeholders contribute to the national strategy?
Many developing countries have planning ministries or commissions responsible for economic development.
This will include large capital expenditures on infrastructure and other poverty-reduction programmes.
In such a scenario, it is critical for the Finance ministry and other economic development-related ministries to focus on shortterm recovery plans and manage macro-economic indicators, rather than taking a longer view on economic and political trends, as well as strategic public investment.
A planning ministry’s perspective might also make it more likely to take into account the longer-term threats created by various challenges that the country is facing.
This is the case in China, which retains a strong planning ministry (the National Development Reform Commission) that is now leading the Chinese government’s overall national response to economic challenges and national planning.
In countries where planning is given much less prominence, mainstreaming of key sectors of the economy into planning processes can be less of a priority.
Sector strategy national development plans are often an amalgamation of sector strategies and elements of cross-cutting development issues such as infrastructure development, critical national projects, currency reforms, promotion of local content, increase of black empowerment and environmental sustainability.
Role of planning ministry
Planning ministries or commissions keep policy and decision makers well ahead and informed before making crucial recommendations.
The lead ministry or agency normally establishes sector-based working groups comprising technicians from the planning and/or strategy units of sector institutions to provide information and content for the national plan.
The lead institutions typically provide directives and guidance to the sector working groups on how to conduct their work and incorporate cross-cutting issues.