By William Baloyi
To answer the call to serve is to take on one of life’s highest callings. Every September, Public Service Month gives us an opportunity to recognise the thousands of public servants who work every day to improve the lives of South Africans. It is also an opportunity to reflect on how we can continue strengthening the public service so that it remains responsive, accessible and capable of meeting the changing needs of the people it serves.
The world in which we deliver public services is changing rapidly. Citizens increasingly use digital platforms to communicate, access information, make payments, conduct business and manage many aspects of their daily lives. These changes are creating new expectations about how services should be accessed and delivered. Government is responding to this changing environment by embracing digital transformation as an important enabler of a modern, efficient and citizen-centred public service.
This direction is consistent with the vision of the National Development Plan 2030, which calls for well-run and effectively coordinated state institutions supported by skilled public servants who are committed to the public good and capable of delivering consistently high-quality services. Digital transformation can help advance this vision by enabling government to simplify processes, improve access to information, strengthen coordination and provide public servants with better tools to perform their responsibilities.
Importantly, digitisation is not about technology for technology’s sake. It is about using innovation purposefully to strengthen the quality of public services and improve the experience of citizens. This means designing digital services around the needs of the people who use them, making information easier to access, simplifying processes and enabling government systems to work together more effectively.
The Department of Public Service and Administration’s Digital Public Services Standard reinforces this approach by emphasising services that are accessible, ethical, secure, user-centric and innovative, in keeping with the principles of Batho Pele.
We are already seeing this transformation take shape across government. Digital Identity is creating opportunities for citizens to securely verify their identities and access government services digitally, while the expansion of digital Home Affairs services, including the partnership with participating banks, is bringing selected services closer to citizens through channels beyond traditional government offices.
These developments form part of a broader digital transformation agenda. Through the MyMzansi initiative and the Digital Transformation Roadmap, government is laying the foundations for more connected digital public services, including secure digital identity, data exchange, digital payments and trusted digital channels for accessing government information and services. Initiatives such as MzansiXchange are supporting this vision by creating opportunities for secure information sharing and verification across government. Together, these innovations demonstrate how government is using technology to make services more accessible, strengthen coordination and build a Public Service that is better equipped to respond to the needs of citizens.
As we embrace these opportunities, digital inclusion must remain at the centre of our approach. Not every South African has the same level of access to connectivity, devices or digital skills. A modern Public Service must therefore expand digital access while ensuring that appropriate alternative channels remain available. Digital transformation should broaden access to government, rather than create new barriers. Our commitment to putting people first must remain constant, even as the tools we use to serve them evolve.
Digitisation can also transform the experience of the public servant. Public servants need innovative tools to perform their duties. Emerging technologies can help officials access information, automate routine processes, and spend less time on administrative tasks, allowing them to focus more fully on their core responsibilities.
The Batho Pele AI Chatbot, launched in August 2026 in partnership with Meta and Juicetel, is one example of how government is using emerging technologies to support its workforce. The chatbot provides public servants with access to policy updates, circulars, legislation and other important government information in nine South African official languages. By reducing the time officials spend searching for information, the tool can help improve responsiveness and enable public servants to devote more time and attention to the people they serve.
Although technology is an enabler, it cannot replace the human responsibility of public service. Artificial intelligence can provide information, automate processes and support decision-making, but public servants remain accountable for the decisions they make and the services they provide.
Judgement, empathy, ethics and a commitment to the public good cannot be automated. The purpose of digital transformation is therefore not to remove people from public service, but to equip them to serve people better. Technology can therefore strengthen the capacity of the Public Service while allowing the human qualities at the heart of public service to remain firmly in place.
This transformation also requires collaboration. The pace of technological change means that government can benefit from working with the private sector, academia, civil society and other partners that bring expertise, innovation and new perspectives. Partnerships can help accelerate solutions and expand what is possible.
At the same time, government has a responsibility to ensure that innovation serves the public interest, protects citizens’ information, promotes inclusion and remains aligned with our constitutional values.
*Baloyi is the Deputy Government Spokesperson
