Dear colleagues,
The principle of adaptability or mutability of public service is one of the cardinal laws of public service, alongside the principles of equality and continuity. Thus, the reception of new information and communication technologies in the administration inevitably involves this catalyst. It is in this sense that the subject of our reflection, relating to the embedding of NICTs and public administration with a view to the development of African States, comes into play.
By public administration we mean the machinery for managing public affairs. It is made up of all the public services whose smooth operation enables the objectives defined by the political authorities to be achieved. The Administration is, by nature, subordinate to ends that are external to it. Its role, structures and methods depend on the society in which it is embedded, on its environment.
In this way, public administration derives its legitimacy from the dominant value system; it does not have its own philosophy. It is this system that sets the administration's goals and the means it must use to achieve them. Furthermore, the territorial framework has an impact on the administration. Among other things, the size of the territory and the ease of communication dictate the structure of the administration.
However, the influence of geography on government is mitigated by technology. The objectives assigned to the administration depend directly on the level of development of the society.
We are well aware that one of the phenomena that has prevailed and continues to prevail in the post- independence period of African countries is undoubtedly the desire of these countries to ensure their national autonomy and, above all, their desire to achieve harmonious socioeconomic development for their respective peoples as quickly as possible.
In this way, the new communication and information technologies are becoming truly effective complementary partners in the development of modern African society. Partnership means establishing a close working relationship between the two parties. In other words, the technicians of the administration and those of the new information and communication technologies are now considering development strategies together, with a view to a new transformation within modern African society. NICTs are the New Information and Communication Technologies on which modern computing is based.
As part of this vision of societal development, it is worth remembering that today's digital explosion means that the media are bound by certain requirements that must be in line with the ethics of the knights of the pen. Faced with this controversial trend in the new administrative management system, with the emergence of new communication and information technologies, our new African society is facing an invasion in several areas, including public administration.
This invasive positivism of the new technologies is shaking up the intelligence of administrative technicians, and it is up to them to become aware of the new global movement in which administration and the new information and communication technologies must now work together. Indeed, these two new partners are becoming inseparable in the performance of their duties.
Digital transformations via networks are systematically changing the habits of the African world. Like the hand of a watch that turns 24 hours a day, the new African society of the 21st century is facing extraordinary adaptations. Reform obligations within administrations, with a view to aligning or collaborating with the new technologies, should henceforth be an integral part of the new strategies of the institutions of the African States.
What strategies should be adopted to ensure that the strategic vision of African leaders is fully in line with the political developments of the new African society in the digital age?
INTEREST IN THE SUBJECT:
Theoretically, being informed is a duty, an obligation. Indeed, every citizen without exception must be part of this intellectual machine which, these days, is becoming a shield of social protection.
It is true that the knights of the pen, through their works, highlight their skills which, moreover, are hailed by all, these latter sometimes swim in turbulent oceans and this is sometimes done at the risk of their lives.
For when their works and thoughts (their ways of communicating or criticizing) are misunderstood, problems arise.
Nowadays, the institutions of African states, with the establishment of the new African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) , are increasingly developing effective reform systems with a view to adapting to the challenges of the new and changing world.
Of the new and changing world, so it is up to the two new partners of the moment to make Africa a real engine for global development. On a practical level, orange vigilance between these two parties is essential. The new administrative policy introduced by the African States via their institutions should be associated with this magic offer, which is none other than the new information and communication technologies. The aim is to make the new strategic vision of African leaders more effective. After all, adapting to globalization could be a heavy burden for African states lagging behind in the digital age.