u003cpu003eWith public services currently under relentless pressure to create a u0026lsquo;modern corruption-free Mauritiusu0026rsquo;, innovation is now positioned as a necessity for survival rather than a u0026lsquo;nice to haveu0026rsquo;. Therefore, a leaderu0026rsquo;s ability to encourage and motivate workers to innovate is crucial.u003c/pu003eu003cpu003eu0026lsquo;Sustaining and improving services, and tackling the most complex policy problems will test our new government to the full in a challenging fiscal context and otherwise. Doing things as they have always done them wonu0026rsquo;t be good enough. They must find new insights and develop new ways of working together with public and communitiesu0026rsquo;.u003c/pu003eu003cpu003eu0026lsquo;In short, the new government and its administration need to build on their capacity to innovate, to make innovation central to their work. They must learn from each other as well as from the public and the communities about how to build innovation into their departments and the country at largeu0026rsquo;.u003c/pu003eu003cpu003eThe recent government has renovated its administration with some young Ministers to portrait a modern public service leaders. These young leaders are often in the public eye and engage with a variety of stakeholders on a regular basis.u003c/pu003eu003cpu003eIt is thus in the interest of the government that the policies and services which are being created in this so-called new and modern administration are deemed to be relevant and successful by the very people they aim to serve. In recent years, it has become increasingly clear that the best way to ensure this is to include the public and stakeholders in the policy-making process, putting their opinions and experiences at the very heart of government decisions that affect them.u003c/pu003eu003cpu003eIt is not to be discounted that public engagement is a structured communication or dialogue between government, the public and other interested parties to inform specific policy development or specific service implementation. It is not to be confused with ongoing stakeholder engagement and communication which is part of u0026lsquo;business as usualu0026rsquo;. Public engagement is more specific than this, and is used when there is a policy or service development that will benefit from further insights from key audiences.u003c/pu003eu003cpu003eMany commentators have discussed the moral dilemmas facing leaders who must make difficult decisions. Whilst previously it was not uncommon for leaders to feel that they were taking decisions in the absence of information, call it ignorance or arrogance, (Ramgoolamu0026rsquo;s regime or Bérengeru0026rsquo;s regime) not sure but we are now in an era of potential information overload. So perhaps the trick for being a participatory leader now comes down to harnessing the power of the information tools available.u003c/pu003eu003cpu003eu0026lsquo;Participatory leadership is a sustainable and empowering way to create successful, positive and prosperous changes in our island. Participatory leaders use every meeting as a key mechanism through which to release potentialu0026rsquo;u003c/pu003eu003cpu003eHowever, community engagement and participation has a history of cynicism and criticism from both the public and the communities they aim to serve.u003c/pu003eu003cpu003eJe participeu003c/pu003eu003cpu003eTu participesu003c/pu003eu003cpu003eIl participeu003c/pu003eu003cpu003eNous participonsu003c/pu003eu003cpu003eVous participezu003c/pu003eu003cpu003eIls profitent (Guess who?)u003c/pu003eu003cpu003eThis highlights that participation without redistribution of power is an empty and frustrating process for the powerless, and therefore engagement of this nature needs careful expectation-setting and regular evaluation of outcomes. It is through this evaluation that leaders can stand by the decisions they take after participation activities have taken place.u003c/pu003e
Public and community engagement in decision making
