The Department of Personal Management (DPM) through its Strategic Policy Research and Development Division ran a workshop on function and expenditure review (FER) at Holiday Inn, Port Moresby, on the 10th November 2025.
The Workshop brought together key policy and fiscal agencies, including the Department of Treasury, Department of Finance, National Economic and Fiscal Commission (NEFC), PNG Forest Authority (PNGFA), and Small and Medium Enterprise Corporation (SMEC).
The DPM, under its mandate as the lead agency for public sector governance and reform, convened the Function and Expenditure Review (FER) Workshop as part of the broader Public Sector Reform and Cost Control Program initiated through NEC Decision No. 373/2020.
The workshop aimed to consolidate stakeholder understanding of the FER framework, strengthen cross-agency collaboration, and align institutional expenditure with core government priorities and performance outcomes.
The discussions were driven by the shared objective of ensuring that functions, structures, and resource allocations within the public service remain efficient, affordable, and strategically coherent in advancing national development goals.
The Department reaffirmed the critical linkage between the FER and the Human Resource Development Strategic Plan (HRDSP) — a 30-year transformational blueprint designed to build an efficient, ethical, and values-driven public service.
The HRDSP, anchored in Vision 2050, MTDP IV, and the Public Service (Management) Act 2014, provides the human capital foundation necessary for implementing the FER’s structural and functional reforms.
Through the HRDSP, DPM is repositioning the public service workforce to ensure: Strategic workforce planning and redistribution across national, provincial, and district levels; Institutional restructuring for cost efficiency and performance accountability; and Evidence-based learning and development interventions aligned with service delivery outcomes.
The FER Workshop reaffirmed DPM’s leadership in advancing structural and fiscal reforms across the public sector. The engagement of central and statutory agencies demonstrated a shared commitment to building an efficient, accountable, and results-driven government machinery.