Editorial

Editorial Overview 2022

Munacinga C. Simatele

I am pleased to welcome you to the 10th edition of the Africa Public Service Delivery and Performance Review. Let me start by thanking all our editorial board members for the work they continue to do for the journal. I would also like to say a special thank you to all our reviewers. Because of their vital work, the journal can maintain its timeous publication.

The journal allows researchers to publish impactful research in a timely manner. While the focus of the journal remains on addressing the public sector and governance issues, development in the research and policy landscape dictates the need for a multidisciplinary approach. Service delivery cannot happen in disciplinary silos. If the research is to be useful and lead to meaningful change in service delivery and governance, the research must address the real-life challenges of service delivery operating in a multidisciplinary space. The approach is evident in the articles published in this volume. For example, we have articles examining service delivery in urban and rural areas. In addition, in recognition of the significance of technology in 21st-century life, various articles accepted in this volume addressed the role of technology in improving governments’ function. The role of technology in delivering services, especially to the poor in developing countries, underpins its importance in the development process. The articles in this volume cover the following six broad areas that speak of the breadth of the journal and its growing relevance to a variety of researchers:

1. Technology and innovation in public service
2. Organisational culture and performance
3. Change management and leadership
4. Local economic development and job creation
5. Review of public legislation
6. Public health

The reach of the journal has continued to grow in various ways. The number of countries of origin for the submissions has increased. The rolling average shows that 20% of the submissions have come from outside South Africa, including various African countries, France, the United Kingdom, India and Australia. Furthermore, the country’s research focus is also widening, making the journal content more relevant.

The journal continues to grow and have an impact beyond South Africa. Our rolling average ensures that 20% of our articles originate from outside South Africa and include various African countries, including France, the United Kingdom, Australia, India and China. Moreover, the institutional footprint within South Africa has also increased. The articles in this issue include articles from 15 South African universities, showing the growing reach of the journal and its growing importance and it shows that researchers recognize the impact the journal has on our readers.

The journal has continued to accept special issues. In 2021, the journal published a timely issue on the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, highlighting the challenges posed by the pandemic and the responses of various public service entities. We are also excited to announce that we will publish a special issue on socioeconomic transformation in 2023.

The journal has made a concerted effort to ensure timely feedback to the authors. We are grateful to all our reviewers who have helped us to ensure that the double-blind review process used by the journal remains rigorous. Nevertheless, finding a pool of competent reviewers who can provide reviews within the journals’ preferred times has been challenging. We have continued to try and reduce the average time between submission, decision and publication. For this reason, the journal continues to identify additional reviewers to widen the pool and relieve the stress on our existing reviewers to reduce the feedback times. We have continued to give opportunities to publish preprints so that findings can be shared timeously.