Senior Government Official

The purpose of this qualification is to prepare a learner to function as a Senior Government Official. A Senior Government Official plans, organises, directs, controls, manages, monitors, and evaluates the overall activities of municipal or local, regional and national, and provincial government departments, boards, agencies, or commissions in accordance with legislation, ethical parameters, procedures and policies established by the government and legislative bodies. Typical graduate character attributes include, among others, proficiency, efficiency, integrity, and high moral and ethical standards. A qualified learner will be able to: • Conceptualise, design, implement, and evaluate public sector policies, including participatory policies and programmes and a public sector development management framework. • Deliver services for public value and lead public sector change. • Conduct and fulfil management functions required to deliver public value. • Integrate public administration under the rule of law. • Strengthen and implement sustainable public sector ethical practices and use knowledge to promote the achievement of public sector goals. • Conduct research and integrate qualitative and quantitative information, methods, and evidence to support decision-making in the public sector. • Analyse and apply administrative provisions to regionalism, decentralisation, and governance. • Demonstrate and apply knowledge of the indigenisation of African philosophies.

Employment in the public sector is highly regulated to ensure that the implementation of Government policies is carried out according to a variety of legislation and regulations. Additionally, one of the aims of the Government is to have a professionalised public sector for a developmental state. To achieve this, several public sector qualifications were envisaged by stakeholders through a consultative process. This is an NQF Level 7 qualification which is a step-up from the Occupational Diploma: General Manager Public Service, at NQF Level 6, which is a qualification that aims at providing the junior and middle manager cadre within the public service with the requisite knowledge, skills, and attitude to serve in the public sector across both different functional units and departments and all spheres of government. The qualification meets the needs of Middle Management Services (MMS). The qualification is part of the trajectory of public sector qualifications and constitutes a step up from the above-mentioned qualification. It is a realignment of the legacy qualification National Diploma: Public Administration (SAQA ID: 57827) at NQF Level 7, currently being used to train those in senior administrative and executive positions in government. According to the latest 'Public Sector Education and Training Authority (PSETA) Final Sector Skills Plan, the Senior Government Official qualification is included in the 'PSETA Sectoral Priority Occupations and Interventions (SPOI) List. The PSETA SSP document further states that the Senior Government Official (SGO) occupation refers to Directors, Chief Directors, and Deputy Director Generals in the Public Service sector. Hence, this qualification is also an enabling instrument to transition MMS into Senior Management Services (SMS) in the public sector. There is an urgency to realign the legacy qualification to train senior and executive managers and advance the public sector professionalisation project. The SGO plays a leadership role in achieving public sector goals and is fully responsible and accountable for the performance of their section or unit. The Advanced Occupational Diploma: Senior Government Official covers a large spectrum of competencies designed to upskill typical learners who will currently be incumbents in the public service and those at the middle management level and wish to move into senior or executive management within the public sector. Some of the more significant competencies, inter alia, are managing public value delivery within the broader market economy, strategically leading public sector change, managing policy, programme and public sector development management framework design and implementation, public sector project and human resources management, and strengthening ethics in the public sector. This qualification will enhance the ability of the qualifying learner to perform the necessary strategic, operational, and administration tasks expected, as well as to improve public sector delivery. The qualifying learner will function with confidence and greater skill within the three spheres of government, agencies, and parastatals. Senior Government Officials advise the government on policy matters and oversee government departments, agencies, and parastatals' interpretation and implementation of government policies, processes, and legislation. Society will benefit from improvements to public sector delivery, as will the economy. The learner will have the requisite skills to achieve public sector goals and targets efficiently and effectively. Consultation with relevant stakeholders had taken place prior to developing this qualification. There is no similar occupational qualification registered on the NQF, and no professional registration, membership or licensing is required for this qualification.

Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL): • Learners will gain access to the qualification through RPL for Access as provided for in the QCTO RPL Policy. RPL for access is conducted by accredited education institution, skills development provider or workplace accredited to offer that specific qualification/part qualification. • Learners who have acquired competencies of the modules of a qualification or part qualification will be exempted from modules through RPL. • RPL for access to the external integrated summative assessment: Accredited providers and approved workplaces must apply the internal assessment criteria specified in the related curriculum document to establish and confirm prior learning. Accredited providers and workplaces must confirm prior learning by issuing a statement of result or certifying a work experience record. Entry Requirements: The minimum entry requirement for this qualification is: • NQF Level 6 qualification.

• Conceptualise, design, implement and evaluate public sector and participatory policies, programmes, and a public sector development management framework.
• Deliver public value and lead public sector change.
• Conduct and fulfil management functions required to deliver public value.
• Integrate public administration under the rule of law.
• Strengthen and implement sustainable public sector ethical practices and use knowledge to promote the achievement of public sector goals.
• Conduct research and integrate qualitative and quantitative information, methods, and evidence to support decision-making in the public sector.
• Analyse and apply administrative provisions to regionalism, decentralisation, and governance.
• Apply knowledge of the indigenisation of African philosophies.