Myanmar has completed an ambitious civil-service reform programme as it strives to achieve a stable transition, between now and when the post-election government is finally formed. This could last as long six months after the actual elections, according to key advisers to the government.
Under the reforms, each ministry has appointed a permanent secretary, who is in charge of all work in that ministry. The 36 officials, all of whom were directors-general in their respective ministries, officially took up their duties late last month. The permanent secretary is the most senior civil servant position and serves directly under the minister, which is a political appointment.
The government of former prime minister U Nu in the 1950s employed permanent secretaries, adopted from the British system, but General Ne Win abolished the post after he seized power in a military coup in 1962. In those days there were only ministers — no deputy ministers — so the permanent secretary acted as the minister's deputy and adviser, the technical expert, whereas the minister was responsible for public policy.
"It is important that the top bureaucrats in each ministry are professional rather than popular, as in the case of the ministers," Zaw Oo, a presidential economic adviser, told Asia Focus in an exclusive interview.
"Hitherto the biggest problem in the civil service has been coordination within and between ministries — this new (permanent secretary) post will help rectify that. The aim is to create one big happy family — and to ensure it's fully integrated."
The reform process is also meant to provide administrative continuity during the forthcoming election campaign, when the most of the current ministers will be on the hustings trying to get re-elected. But the reforms, dubbed the "third wave" by President Thein Sein are meant to be durable, and are part of the push to improve the long-term accountability, coordination and efficiency of the bureaucracy.
Now that the permanent secretaries are in place, attention will turn to the next stage of civil service reform — streamlining within the ministries.
The post of permanent secretary is also intended to facilitate communication across ministries, which has been acutely lacking. The shortcomings have been increasingly noticeable in the last five years as the country opened up to foreign investment, trade and aid — as both businessmen and officials from international organisations, including the UN have regularly complained.
One senior UN official, who declined to be identified, was dismayed when a minister asked him to ask his fellow minister to cooperate on a programme they were all involved in. "I can't talk directly to another minister on official business," he quoted the minister as saying.
"There is no horizontal communication across ministries," a former deputy minister confided to Asia Focus, on condition of anonymity.
QUALIFIED AND COMPETENT
All permanent secretaries are all people who are well versed in ministry affairs, according to Myanmar businessmen who deal with these people on almost a daily basis. They were selected from an original pool of 67 civil servants, all nominated for intensive training before appearing before the civil service selection board at the end of the course.
The studies covered core policy and law, human resources, external relations, budgeting and finance, as well as monitoring and evaluation. During the course they were subject to continuous assessment on their leadership skills and participation, with a strong emphasis on proficiency in English. They also had to write a "reflection paper" and a thesis during the course, and sit an end of term paper before graduating.
All the candidates who received training were chosen by the ministers, and approved by the president's office. Their experience and background was also taken into account when the final selection was made, according to Zaw Oo, who was involved in their training. The President's office then approved the final appointments.
"They are all effectively the president's men," said one government adviser confidentially.
That view was echoed by Khine Win, a political commentator and director of the Sandhi Governance Institute. "It represents the 'president-ialisation' of the top of the civil service," he quipped.
But with one crucial change: they are competent. For many Myanmar businessmen and government advisers, this is an important improvement that may bear fruit.
"The ministers are the real problem for the government," an economic adviser said recently. Businessmen have raised concerns that ministers — even if they have to formally resign from office to campaign for election — would still try to intervene in policy and decisions, and exert their influence over the civil service.
"We have to start somewhere," said Zaw Oo, who headed the training for the permanent secretaries. "It's a long-term project, and the hope is that they will become the champions of change."
The government is completely committed to reform but it has discovered, particularly from its engagement with the international community, that political and economic reforms were being severely hampered by structural obstacles and lack of human capacity, he said.
"We need the right people in the right places," he added. "The problem is at the top — it was not the right leadership."
MORE CHANGES IN PIPELINE
A further restructuring within the ministries is also under way — with some ministries, notably health, it is well advanced. There, the responsibilities have been divided in two streams: public health (or health planning) and medical affairs. Mining is also being reshaped — with some directorates being merged.
In all the ministries, under the permanent secretaries, there is an office with five directors. They all received training along the lines of the pool of permanent secretaries, but less intensive.
"They were not as rigorously assessed, but are to be part of the management team, and understand the philosophy of the changes," said Zaw Oo.
The civil service reforms are ongoing, with streamlining the bureaucracy the next priority. With the appointment of a top civil servant in each ministry, the command structure is stabilised and communication flows established.
"This will make it easier for business," said an owner of a leading Myanmar private mining company. Previously there were seven directors-general in the mining ministry, who ran their divisions like fiefdoms, with only the minister with the authority to make important decisions.
As part of the restructuring, ministries will divest their state enterprises, leaving them to the private sector to operate, and concentrate on regulating the industries they are responsible for. For example, the plan is to privatise Myanmar Post and Telecommunications (MPT), the housing unit in the Ministry of Construction, and other state enterprise under ministerial control.
"This will help make the ministries more efficient, transparent and accountable," said Zaw Oo.
Military members of parliament attend a session in Nay Pyi Daw, where men in uniform will continue to play a major role in legislative affairs no matter what happens in the election scheduled for November.
TOO MUCH GREEN?
One problem that persists, according to critics of the government, is that many of these permanent secretaries were military men originally, before being transferred to the civil service.
"Most high-ranking officials in government ministries came from the military; most DGs [directors-general] have a military background. These people will now become more important [through the creation of the permanent secretary post] even if the next government is a purely civilian government [after the 2015 elections]," said Yan Myo Thein, an independent political analyst. "What I believe is that government is trying to keep the military regime mechanisms strong, even after the election."
In fact, this is not the case — with more than half of the permanent secretaries being "purely civilians", many of them from an academic background. But even those who were originally military men have served in the bureaucracy for more than a decade. Only the permanent secretary for labour — Myo Nyunt — is a relative newcomer, having been transferred from the army to the ministry in 2010.
"There are many who have been soldiers in the past, but they have become experts in their field and proven administrators," said Zaw Oo. That sentiment endorsed by many Myanmar businessmen, academics and analysts. Tint Swe, the new permanent secretary in the Ministry of Information, served in the military for 22 years but largely in training posts — his last position before joining the ministry was as editor of the military's medical journal, he told Asia Focus.
Tint Swe was transferred to the ministry more than a decade ago, and was in charge of the press scrutiny board — responsible for the government's censorship — until it was abolished in 2012. Most editors in the independent media have nothing but praise for him.
"He's a wonderful man and a brilliant bureaucrat," said Ross Dunkley, a former editor of Myanmar Times, who has dealt with him for years. "He always stood head and shoulders above everyone else in the ministry — accessible, accommodating and reasonable. By far the best man for the job."
Not everyone is as enthusiastic about the other appointments, though the concern is more to do with the bureaucratic culture than the quality of the newly appointed top bureaucrats. Many Myanmar businessmen remain sceptical that this can change anytime soon.
Most fear that the hierarchical nature of the country's government and society will impede the commendable intentions of the reforms. The hope is that these new permanent secretaries will be professional and expert, accessible and flexible, but the evidence suggests there are still weaknesses in the over all appointments.
Most of those selected are "yes minister" types, said several Myanmar businessmen, privately. "The permanent secretary in the agriculture ministry, although a former university rector, listens too much to the minister," said a Myanmar businessman in the agriculture sector. "And that is unlikely to change in the near future."
With a few exceptions, this seems to be the main concern — a tendency to take orders, a lack of initiative and ability to think outside the box. They were selected because they were disciplined, obedient and honest, confided a minister in the president's office involved in the selection process.
This is particularly important, as they will be responsible for all the government activities after the ministers resign to take part in the elections.
"The legal and constitutional requirements for the transition period before the next government takes office are unclear," said Zaw Oo. "But the ministers who have been selected by their party to contest the elections must leave office."
Under the constitution it is illegal to be in the executive — president and cabinet — and be involved in party matters — like running elections. According to senior sources in the President's office, all ministers will resign in mid-August to concentrate on the elections.
But it is also unclear whether they are stepping down for the duration of the election campaign only, and would resume their duties afterward, while parliament elects a new president and executive. Much may depend on the election results, as to whether they formally remain in office.
However, what is very clear is that the newly appointed permanent secretaries will be responsible for running the government on a day-to-day in the interim and are meant to provide public policy continuity in the meantime.
While the new crop of permanent secretaries may be the link between the current government and the post-election administration, they may not survive the changeover, according to some analysts.
They are "permanent" in name only: the next President may dispense with their services. They have not been approved by parliament, but by presidential order — so their long-term security is questionable. But they will provide a bridge during the final stages of the transition, and could compensate for the lack of experience and expertise among the next group of ministers, who emerge to form the new government.
The initial prognosis is that these new permanent secretaries are certainly a step in the right direction. They represent much-needed streamlining of the ministries, which will certainly benefit both businesses and the public. But in the short term they are unlikely to really exercise power.
"Their authority and power is still unclear," said Hnin Oo, a member of the Union of Myanmar Federation of Chambers of Commerce and Industry (UMFCCI) central committee. So it remains most likely that government will go into hibernation during the election campaign. Opportunities for businessmen and investors during this time are also likely to be severely limited as a result.