2009年-世界发展银行全球_Mongolia___Towards_a_High_Performing_Civil_Service_74页_6mb

Summary of Report No. 50767-MN: Towards a High Performing Civil Service in Mongolia

Objective of the Report

This report addresses the need for civil service reform in Mongolia to ensure fiscal sustainability, improve public sector productivity, and enhance transparency and accountability in government operations. It identifies three key areas for reform: grading and compensation systems, payroll administration, and personnel management. The report emphasizes the importance of aligning these reforms with the broader goal of avoiding the resource curse and channeling the mining boom into sustained economic growth and poverty reduction.

Core Content

Legal Framework

Mongolia's civil service legal framework has evolved since the transition from socialism in 1990. The current structure is governed by two laws: the Civil Service Law (CSL) and the Public Sector Management and Finance Law (PSMFL). These laws define the civil service as comprising four categories: political service, administrative service, special service, and support service. The administrative and special services are considered the core civil service, with their personnel management governed by the CSL and PSMFL. The support service is subject to sector-specific laws and follows general labor code provisions.

The Civil Service Council is the central agency for public sector management reforms and oversees personnel matters, including recruitment, performance evaluation, and dispute resolution. However, the Council's status as a parliamentary body creates a disconnect with the executive, which hinders its policy and management effectiveness.

Structure of the Civil Service

• Size and Wage Bill: The Mongolian civil service, measured by sanctioned government posts, has fluctuated over the years, reaching nearly 144,000 in 2008. The wage bill now accounts for over a fifth of total government expenditures.
• Skill Mix and Geographic Distribution: The civil service has a significant proportion of low or semi-skilled staff, with about a fifth to a quarter of employees in this category. The geographic distribution is relatively equitable, but there is a noticeable concentration of higher-skilled staff in Ulaanbaatar and the eastern aimags.
• Demographic Characteristics: The civil service is characterized by a high proportion of female staff and a relatively young workforce.

Grading, Compensation, and Payroll Administration

• Current Issues:

  • Lack of Proper Job Evaluations: Jobs are often graded based on organizational status rather than job responsibilities.
  • Horizontal Inequities: Similar jobs in different organizations are graded and compensated differently.
  • Complex Pay Structure: Compensation includes various allowances and extra payments, leading to non-transparency and inequity.
  • Variance in Pay: Pay for similar positions varies significantly, undermining fairness.
  • Pay Compression and Overlap: Pay scales are compressed and overlapping, leading to an inefficient and random pay distribution.
  • No Market Comparisons: Pay is not benchmarked against market standards.
  • Unrealistic Performance Pay: Performance pay provisions are not aligned with the current developmental stage of Mongolia.

• Recommendations:

  • Simplify Pay: Merge all allowances and extra payments into basic pay to ensure transparency and equal pay for equal work.
  • Phased Grading Reform: Introduce a job-based grading system and conduct benchmarking studies to ensure competitiveness with the private sector.
  • Locality Pay: Implement locality pay to encourage horizontal mobility and attract staff to remote areas.
  • Centralized Payroll System: Develop an automated, centralized payroll system to improve financial planning and control.
  • Stakeholder Coordination: Enhance coordination between the Civil Service Council, Ministry of Finance, and Ministry of Social Welfare and Labour.

Personnel Management

• Recruitment: Mongolia follows a "position-based system" where recruitment is based on selecting the best candidate for each role. However, the presence of two laws governing recruitment (CSL and PSMFL) creates ambiguity and confusion.
• Support Staff Recruitment: Recruitment of support staff, such as teachers, is highly decentralized and lacks formal procedures, leading to potential inefficiencies and lack of accountability.
• Tenure Protection and Mobility: The civil service suffers from high staff turnover, particularly after elections, which disrupts management and impacts performance. There is also a lack of horizontal mobility, with many administrative civil servants remaining in one or two ministries throughout their careers.
• Recommendations:
  • Improve Recruitment Modalities: Integrate recruitment procedures into the CSL to ensure clarity and consistency.
  • Devolve Oversight: Transfer school management oversight to parents and local communities to increase accountability.
  • Enhance Tenure Security: Remove loopholes in the legal framework and establish an institutional mechanism for staff transfers.
  • Strengthen the Civil Service Council: Increase its capacity to effectively implement its mandate.

Conclusion

This report outlines a strategic path for civil service reform in Mongolia, focusing on simplifying pay, improving payroll administration, and enhancing personnel management. These reforms are essential for ensuring a high-performing civil service that can support sustainable economic growth and poverty reduction. The recommendations emphasize the need for a coordinated, transparent, and market-aligned approach to civil service management.