Integrating Ubuntu philosophy in South African legislation for managing public sector ethics

Takudzwa Musekiwa (), Tyanai Masiya () and Stellah Lubinga ()

International Journal of Public Policy and Administration Research, 2025, vol. 12, issue 4, 260-273

Abstract: Extant research demonstrates that indigenous ethical systems can significantly shape public administrators’ decision-making processes. However, the inclusion of indigenous ethical systems has been limited. The exclusion of indigenous ethical systems like Ubuntu from South Africa’s public sector ethics framework has resulted in a lack of cultural relevance, weakening ethical conduct, undermining accountability and trust, and limiting the framework’s effectiveness in promoting integrity and combating corruption. This article aims to assess the potential of integrating the Ubuntu philosophy into South African legislation for managing public sector ethics. This article employs a qualitative approach. Thematic analysis was used to analyze the data to examine the frequency with which Ubuntu philosophy is integrated into existing legislation from secondary sources for managing public sector ethics. Findings of the study reveal limited incorporation of Ubuntu philosophy in the existing legislative framework for managing public sector ethics, resulting in lack of ethical governance and accountability in South Africa. To address the lack of incorporation of Ubuntu principles in the above legislation, there is a need for explicit references to the Ubuntu principles. This study contributes to public administration scholarship by critically highlighting the limited integration of the Ubuntu philosophy within South Africa’s public sector ethics legislation and offering practical recommendations for embedding indigenous ethical principles to enhance cultural relevance, strengthen ethical conduct, and improve accountability and integrity in public service delivery.

Keywords: Ethics; Legislation; Public sector; Service delivery; South Africa; Ubuntu. (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://archive.conscientiabeam.com/index.php/74/article/view/4570/8870 (application/pdf)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:pkp:ijppar:v:12:y:2025:i:4:p:260-273:id:4570

Access Statistics for this article

More articles in International Journal of Public Policy and Administration Research from Conscientia Beam
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Dim Michael ().