The 19^th Public Sector Innovation Conference

The Centre for Public Service Innovation (CPSI), a National Government Component under the Minister for the Public Service and Administration, is pleased to announce the 19th Annual Public Sector Innovation Conference.

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Changing the narrative of innovation|

CONFERENCE DELEGATES: We invite public officials from the three spheres of government, private sector, academia and civil society to come together and indulge in an inexhaustive wealth of knowledge and expert presentations by various luminaries in public sector innovation.

Come and be part of our effort to amplify the call for a digitalised government for guaranteed universal access to citizen services.

Kindly note registration to the conference is free of charge.

NB: Delegates are responsible for own travel and accommodation

About The Conference

The Rationale of #PSIConference2025

The adoption of the National Development Plan in 2012, with Vision 2030 assured a better life for all citizens and a renewed sense of hope and optimism in the country. Now, with 2030 looming large upon us, our strides in achieving our developmental agenda have faltered due to many reasons including the COVID-19 Pandemic and the recent geo-political developments.

To mitigate against this, the 2024-2029 Medium-Term Development Plan (MTDP) as announced by President Ramaphosa in the 2025 State of the Nation Address (SONA), listed three key priorities for the 7th Administration. namely:

Driving inclusive growth and job creation.
Reducing poverty and tackling the high cost of living; and
Building a capable, ethical and developmental state.

At stake here is firstly having in place, a government that works for the people. Said President Ramaphosa: “We need a state that is capable and competent, underpinned by a professional public service. South Africans want a state that treats all people with dignity, humility and respect. A state with leaders who are prepared to serve our people with complete dedication, and public servants who are ethical, skilled and properly qualified.”

Secondly, such a government needs to embrace the culture of innovation in the Public Sector. Given the rapid technological explosion and its proven limitless potential to reshape the workspace and the global economy, government should
constantly work innovatively to explore new and effective solutions to ensure universal access to quality services.

It is thus crucial that an innovative landscape for digital government is created. Digitalising various government services and information creates a digital government and an inclusive digital society where all citizens, regardless of location, age or disability can benefit from the opportunities offered by innovation to improve their quality of life. It is for this reason that government, led by the Presidency is now driving the Digital Transformation Roadmap for the Public Sector.

DATE: 28 - 29 August 2025

TIMES: 08:30 - 16:00 daily

VENUE: ANEW Hotel and Convention Centre O R Tambo

FEE: Free of charge (cover own accommodation and travels)

Main Focus

The 2025 Theme

The theme of the 19th Public Sector Innovation conference is: Citizen-centric digital Transformation

To support the creation of a capable, ethical developmental state, this theme highlights the need for urgent reforms, amongst which would be implementing digital transformation in government to achieve impactful service delivery. Digital transformation is about leveraging technology to improve various government processes and systems. Central to this is the deployment of adaptive, customised digital public infrastructure, offering multi-channels of access by all.

Making public services accessible and versatile is the first step towards tearing down the barriers that citizens encounter when accessing public services.

SUB-THEMES

The theme will be unpacked through the following sub-themes:

Accelerating capacity building for an effective digital government,
Digital co-designing for inclusive citizen-centred services,
Innovation for Impact: Showcasing award-winning public sector innovations.

The aim of the conference is:

to help amplify the ongoing urgent call for digitalising government processes and systems to enable a two-way interactive and transactive capacity between government and citizens regardless of socio-economic stature, location, disability, amongst others.
to provide a platform for delegates to collectively interrogate and analyse citizen-centric digital transformation in government, including design practices and other key requirements for a vibrant safe and secure digital landscape.

Convention of System Developers

Developer Conference

As in the previous conference, a DevCon will be hosted on the margins of the main conference, seeking to practicalise the theme of Citizen-centric digital transformation, in particular, for developers and ICT practitioners within government.

The DevCon provides for a shared learning and collaboration space and will explore the specific role of ICT practitioners in shaping the transformation roadmap. It is structured as an ‘unconference’ and therefore the agenda will be determined by the delegates.

KINDLY NOTE: Due to limited space at the DevCon (100 delegates), early registration
is highly recommended.

FOR COLLABORATION: mmabatho.mashaba@cpsi.co.za