An analysis of South Africa's health policy performance to the COVID-19 pandemic during the period March 2020 and June 2022
The study aims to assume a dominant position on whether the health policy deployed benefited the public, was accessible on an equitable scale to all members of different social classes, the measure of equitability would be: 1) the effective use of resources allocated to reduce impact of COVID-19, and 2) quantitative data that shows improved access to healthcare during the mentioned period, and if the power of decision-making given to the government was exercised responsibly. Pandemic history often reveals stark weaknesses in a government's health system. Its impact results in widening the inequality gap among social class groups or exacerbating the conditions of already weak infrastructure. This was the case with the onset and spread of COVID-19 in South Africa. In March 2020, South Africa reported its first case of COVID-19, it was an imported case, arriving through an international visit. The patient was a traveler from Italy. Approximately 18 days later, the virus spread through close contact and community transmission. The South African Government instituted a swift reactive response to mitigate the spread of COVID-19 as this was projected to have dire effects if not dealt with urgency. Central to this was the South African Government's health policy response identifying priority areas for its efficacy. These were identified as non-pharmaceutical interventions as a vaccine, or any medical intervention was unavailable. A country-wide risk-adjusted strategy was deployed that tightened or loosened regulations depending on the level of threat the country was facing, indicated by a rise or drop in the cumulative number of infections over some time. This study examines publicly available data that focuses on the COVID-19 health policy response in South Africa, to determine its impact on South African citizens. The research aims to establish this by, relating public management theories such as Social Contract Theory, Quality of Government Theory, and the Theory of Public Value. Analysis of these elements ensures the research objectives were met. These public management theories are relevant in the public policy discourse and applicable in making determinations about whether a public policy is an efficient system through its laws, decisions, plans and actions. Legislation was adjusted during the COVID-19 period for ease of procurement processes to enable agility in decision-making. This was done to bridge the gap of existing service delivery bottlenecks and accelerate responsiveness, especially to vulnerable communities. A multi-sectoral command council was established to support the deployment of health policy response. The health policy response deployed by the National Health Department was aligned with the ethos of saving lives while protecting livelihoods, championed by the National Command Council and other critical role players. Critical to its success was its delivery to provincial and local municipal levels. The analysis shows that while ease of governance processes was enabled to serve the public and ensure health solutions covered the populations aptly, it left gaps that were exploited resulting in high-end corruption, highlighting the need for greater controls, accountability, and oversight during times of mass crisis. Recommendations to the study are to improve the process followed in the development of public policy. To reduce the abuse of power when enforcing legislation during a pandemic close monitoring of reporting on all incidences must be enacted within a timeframe to mark its urgency. To enhance transparency, performance management contracts of accounting officers must include declarations, transparency in relationships, and being held to a higher standard of behaviour that can result in immediate disciplinary action if unsavoury behaviour is linked to their term of office. This must be done in addition to existing institutional disciplinary action, consequence management, and rules regulating the position and institution. To restore credibility, trust and a service-centric public service, Batho Pele principles must be restored in the public service domain, they will assist in addressing behaviour, driving a service-first value system.
UCTD, Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), Health, Policy, Economics, Public Management, Analysis
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