(2017-04) Circular No. 003 on Rationalization in the Civil Service and Contractual-Staff Service Contracts
Summary — Issued 17 April 2017 by Prime Minister Jack Guy Lafontant, this circular tightens rules on appointing and hiring public agents. It requires that nomination, promotion and hiring decisions be cleared by the Office of Management and Human Resources (OMRH) for legal and budgetary compliance, and that contractual staff be recruited through competitive processes overseen jointly by OMRH and the Ministry of Economy and Finance.
Key Findings
- Nomination, promotion and contractual-hiring decisions must be verified for legal and budgetary conformity before execution.
- Contractual staff attached to cabinets and services must be recruited through joint OMRH-MEF competitive processes.
- The reform is grounded in Constitution Article 160, the 17 May 2005 civil-service statute decree and the 2 April 2013 recruitment-procedure order.
- OMRH is tasked with evaluating ongoing hiring practices and reporting irregularities directly to the Prime Minister.
Full Description
Circular No. 003 responds to the Prime Minister's general policy declaration before Parliament on good governance and the need to restore order in the recruitment and appointment of public agents. It grounds the reform in Article 160 of the Constitution (the Prime Minister's power to appoint and revoke civil servants under the terms set by the Constitution and the civil-service statute), Article 236-2, the 17 May 2005 decree revising the general civil-service statute, and the 2 April 2013 order fixing procedures for competitive recruitment exams. It sets out that nomination, promotion and contractual-hiring decisions must be reviewed for conformity with the law, regulations and available budget appropriations, that recruitment of contractual staff attached to cabinets and services must proceed via joint competitive processes run by OMRH and the Ministry of Economy and Finance, and that OMRH must evaluate ongoing hiring practices and report administrative irregularities to the Prime Minister promptly.