CHANGE OR STAGNATE

Hikaumba demands digital revolution in Civil Service, warning that paper-based bureaucracy is slowing service delivery, wasting public resources and weakening accountability

By Francis Maingaila ♥️

Lusaka, Zambia24 — 11-10-2026 — MDC vice-president and former Zambia Congress of Trade Unions (ZCTU) president Leonard Hikaumba has called for urgent digital transformation of the Civil Service, warning that continued reliance on paper-based systems is slowing service delivery, wasting public resources and weakening accountability.

Hikaumba told Zambia24 that public administration built around slow, paper-driven procedures risked holding back government operations, undermining public confidence and frustrating citizens who depend on timely delivery of services.

He said digital transformation was no longer an optional administrative reform but an urgent national development priority requiring decisive leadership, investment and sustained institutional commitment.

“A Civil Service that moves at the speed of paper cannot deliver the ambitions of a modern nation,” Hikaumba said.

He said Zambia needed to confront whether its existing public administration systems were capable of delivering the speed, efficiency, transparency and accountability required in a modern economy.

Hikaumba said unnecessary delays in processing documents, missing files, duplicated approvals and bureaucratic obstacles were undermining government productivity, weakening business confidence and placing an unnecessary burden on public resources.

He said ordinary citizens were often the most affected by these inefficiencies because they depended on government institutions for services that should be delivered within reasonable timelines.

Hikaumba said the Civil Service needed to move away from analogue practices towards integrated, secure and accessible digital systems that would make public services more efficient and responsive to citizens' needs.

He said government services should be organised around the needs of the public rather than the convenience of outdated administrative procedures.

“Documents must be traceable. Decisions must be accountable. Processes must be measurable. Services must be delivered within clear and reasonable timelines,” he said.

Hikaumba said digital transformation involved more than purchasing computers, installing software or improving internet connectivity, stressing that it also required a fundamental change in the culture of public administration.

He said public institutions needed to move away from unnecessary delays, excessive bureaucracy and opaque decision-making towards efficient service delivery, transparent transactions and measurable performance.

Hikaumba said properly implemented digital systems could reduce document-processing times, minimise lost records, eliminate unnecessary administrative procedures and improve coordination between government institutions.

He said electronic records and digital audit trails could strengthen accountability by making transactions easier to trace and decisions easier to scrutinise, thereby narrowing opportunities for corruption.

Hikaumba said digitalisation could also reduce administrative costs and allow public officers to concentrate on productive work instead of spending excessive time handling repetitive paperwork and cumbersome approval processes.

He said national development depended not only on government policies and ambitions but also on the ability of public institutions to implement decisions efficiently and translate national priorities into tangible results.

Hikaumba said a digitally enabled Civil Service was therefore essential to improving public sector productivity, strengthening good governance and supporting Zambia's economic transformation.

He warned that continued dependence on outdated systems could delay the implementation of government programmes at a time when citizens and businesses expected public institutions to respond more quickly and efficiently.

Hikaumba said Zambia could no longer afford fragmented digital initiatives and declarations of intent without a clear framework for implementation.

He called for strong leadership, adequate investment and sustained institutional commitment to place digital transformation at the centre of Civil Service reform.

“The choice before us is clear: modernise public administration to meet the demands of the future, or allow outdated systems to continue holding back the delivery of public services,” he said.

Hikaumba said the cost of modernising government systems should be weighed against the greater cost of inefficiency, lost productivity and declining public confidence.

He said digital transformation should be treated as an immediate priority rather than a reform that was continually postponed.

“A digitally transformed Civil Service is not simply a more efficient government. It is a stronger foundation for a more accountable state, a more productive economy and a Zambia better equipped to achieve sustainable development,” Hikaumba said.