[kictanet] ICT Authority, not Treasury, should oversee IFMIS

waudo siganga emailsignet at mailcan.com
Wed Jan 18 13:55:02 EAT 2017 

Hi Walu - I do not agree with you that access administration (passwords)
is a technical function. In most cases passwords just mimic
authorization structures that pre-exist in a manual system. It is very
important that the access of technical people to a system, especially a
financial one, be as inhibited as possible. Those who access the system
should only be capable of doing the functions they would perform in a
manual system. To enhance security of the system, access administration
should be overseen by a most senior person who is NOT trained to do
technical work on the system.
 

I also differ with your suggestion that it is the work of technical
people to enforce, check or review system controls. That should be the
function of an independent auditor.
 

Overall I think there is much misunderstanding about IFMIS. The problem
is not technical; it is administrative. Specifically access
administration (passwords).
 

W.

 

On Wed, Jan 18, 2017, at 01:06 PM, Walubengo J via kictanet wrote:

> Grace B via kictanet <kictanet at lists.kictanet.or.ke> wrote>>>

> Second, the problem with IFMIS, it appears is a lack of commitment to
> simple values such as integrity and prudent stewardship of public
> funds. What guarantee wold we have that ICTA would be different from
> Treasury?
>  

> >>

> Segregation of duties solves this.  Treasury continues being the
> Process owner, but surrenders the Technical leadership of the
> system/ERP to ICT Authority. So if it is a case of passwords and their
> use, expiry amongst other technical issues, we know it is ICT
> Authority to manage (and take blame).
>  

> It is often a confusing and thin line. The line between Administrative
> and Technical authority.
>  

> But you can look at it in terms of the President's Security detail.
> The President maybe the (Administrative) boss of his security detail,
> but the President can never tell his security detail HOW to guard him
> or what weapons to use or how many guards he needs, where to position
> them etc.
>  

> These are TECHNICAL issues that the President cannot and should never
> pretend to be dictating on since they lie squarely within the
> NIS/Inspector General domain. The moment NIS start taking technical
> instructions from the President, is the moment our security system
> will collapse.
>  

> If we get this seperation of authority right, we solve the
> IFMIS puzzle.
>  

> walu.

>  

>  

> From: Grace B via kictanet <kictanet at lists.kictanet.or.ke> To:
> jwalu at yahoo.com Cc: Grace B <nmutungu at gmail.com> Sent: Wednesday,
> January 18, 2017 7:11 AM Subject: Re: [kictanet] ICT Authority, not
> Treasury, should oversee IFMIS
>  

> Interesting discussion. There are those who would look at IFMIS as a
> public finance management issue as opposed to an ICT one but this is
> not really count when giving management mandate to either Treasury or
> ICTA as long as the objectives of PFM (Article 201 of Katiba) are met.
> One of the issues voiced about IFMIS since devolution/new Constitution
> has been the problems experienced by county governments and other
> independent organs eg commissions in accessing funds in a timely
> manner. (We assume that Executive has not had too many problems
> assessing funds and may have indeed been facilitating leakage)
> One issue with transferring the responsibility of maintaining IFMIS to
> ICTA, it seems would be that there could be few differences between
> ICTA and Treasury. First, both are Executive institutions that may
> support devolved and independent structures in line with the soft
> policy direction of the government of the day. Second, the problem
> with IFMIS, it appears is a lack of commitment to simple values such
> as integrity and prudent stewardship of public funds. What guarantee
> wold we have that ICTA would be different from Treasury?
>  

> Regards

>  

> 2017-01-18 5:54 GMT+03:00 Ali Hussein via kictanet
> <kictanet at lists.kictanet.or.ke>:
>> Barrack

>>  

>> We are saying the same thing really.. Let's assume that the ICTA is
>> the ICT Department of the Government (which I doubt it is equipped to
>> execute that mandate) then 'managing' here really means providing
>> support to the system.
>>  

>> I think it's time the Government considers the role of Chief
>> Information Officer to really manage the strategic thrust of all ICT
>> initiatives across ministries. The CIO can then be held accountable
>> for overall efficiency and security of all Government ICT Systems.
>> This CIO needs to report directly to the Chief Executive Officer
>> (President) of the country. Now, that person could be seconded or be
>> a part of the ICTA with a doted line responsibility to the CS,
>> MOICT...
>>  

>> Ultimately the overall responsibility of how well our Government ICT
>> Systems work lies squarely on the CEO's desk. Look no further.
>>
>> Ali Hussein

>> Principal

>> Hussein & Associates

>> +254 0713 601113 

>>  

>> Twitter: @AliHKassim

>> Skype: abu-jomo

>> LinkedIn: http://ke.linkedin. com/in/alihkassim[1]

>> "We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, therefore, is not an act
>> but a habit."  ~ Aristotle
>>  

>>  
>>  Sent from my iPad

>>
>>  On 17 Jan 2017, at 11:27 PM, Barrack Otieno via kictanet
>>  <kictanet at lists.kictanet.or.ke > wrote:
>>
>>> Hi Ali,
>>>
>>> ERP grew from MRP (Material Resource Planning which was a means of
>>> planning and allocating resources in Factories. The difference
>>> between the two is that MRP's were stand alone systems whereas ERP's
>>> are modular and have more functionality. From an evolution
>>> perspective , it would be ideal to manage IFMIS from Ministry of
>>> Finance since they are the custodians of the treasury and normally
>>> allocate resources through the budgeting process. From a Project
>>> Management perspective, it would be ideal to manage IFMIS from ICTA
>>> since it is the specialized agency meant to manage government
>>> technology investments.
>>>
>>> Regards
>>>
>>> On 1/17/17, S.M. Muraya via kictanet <kictanet at lists.kictanet.or.ke
>>> > wrote:Doubt Treasury economists and accountants are well placed to
>>> provide CyberSecurity :) We need the ICT Authority to configure
>>> enterprise wide data protection(limiting theft of passwords & access
>>> to IFMIS). In 2016, the UN ranked the UK as # 1 in providing digital
>>> services. https://publicadministration. un.org/egovkb/en-us/Reports/
>>> UN-E-Government-Survey-2016[2] The Government Digital Service (GDS)
>>> is part of their Cabinet Office, nottheir Treasury.
>>> https://www.gov.uk/government/ publications/govuk-pay/govuk- pay[3]
>>> Their Treasury is consulted about the payment system  👆🏾  the
>>> GDScontinues to build.    SMM *"Better a patient person than a
>>> warrior, one with self-control than onewho takes a city." Prov
>>> 16:32* On Tue, Jan 17, 2017 at 9:45 PM, Ali Hussein
>>> <ali at hussein.me.ke> wrote: I fundamentally disagree with this
>>> assertion. First,y, the role of a CIO is to support the enterprise.
>>> I have neverheard in my life of an ERP Director. This is just adding
>>> a superfluouslayer of useless bureaucracy. The owner of an ERP is
>>> the business with each department taking ownershipof their components:-
>>> 1. Financials - CFO2. CRM (Commercial/marketing/sales)3. Procurement
>>> - Procurement which sometimes comes under Finance Etc. The CIO takes
>>> ownership to ensure that the company is well oiled toexecute on its
>>> mandate. This in my humble opinion goes beyond ERPs andtalks to
>>> aligning the Technology Strategy with the Business Strategy.
>>> Forexample in the banking sector where increasingly the more savvy
>>> banks aretaking a 'Platform Thinking' approach. This allows partners
>>> to plug intotheir core technology through APIs to enable them extend
>>> capabilities andhence offerings to their customers. The role of a
>>> CIO has fundamentally changed to speak to the need
>>> forusingTechnology as an accelerator to successful business models.
>>> Secondly, I don't see how the ICT Authority would be better in
>>> managingthe monster that is IFMIS. Let them first learn the basics
>>> ofcommunicatingeffectively with the community before taking on this
>>> elephant in theroom. *Ali Hussein**Principal**Hussein &
>>> Associates*+254 0713 601113 Twitter: @AliHKassim Skype: abu-jomo
>>> LinkedIn: http://ke.linkedin.com/in/ alihkassim[4] "We are what we
>>> repeatedly do. Excellence, therefore, is not an act but ahabit."  ~
>>> Aristotle  Sent from my iPad On 17 Jan 2017, at 6:42 PM, S.M. Muraya
>>> via kictanet <kictanet at lists.kictanet.or.ke> wrote: Interesting
>>> comments... ICT Authority, not Treasury, should oversee IFMIS
>>> http://www.nation.co.ke/oped/ blogs/dot9/walubengo/2274560-[5]3520560-
>>> 5j04aq/index.html ______________________________
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>>
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>
>  
>  --


> Grace L.N. Mutung'u Skype: gracebomu Twitter: @Bomu
>
>  <http://www.diplointernetgovernance.org/profile/GraceMutungu>
>  

> PGP ID : 0x33A3450F
>   
>   


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Links:

   1. http://ke.linkedin.com/in/alihkassim
   2. https://publicadministration.un.org/egovkb/en-us/Reports/UN-E-Government-Survey-2016
   3. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/govuk-pay/govuk-pay
   4. http://ke.linkedin.com/in/alihkassim
   5. http://www.nation.co.ke/oped/blogs/dot9/walubengo/2274560-
   6. https://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet
   7. https://www.facebook.com/KICTANet/
   8. http://40alyhussein.com/
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  10. https://www.facebook.com/KICTANet/
  11. https://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/options/kictanet/info%40alyhussein.com
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