South Africa's dismal showing in the World Economic Forum's Global Competitiveness Index - our ranking slipped three places to 56th out of 144 countries last year - was largely a product of slow economic growth, appalling labour relations, and poor education and training. Problems such as these are systemic and will require government policies that are far more business-friendly, a Herculean national effort, visionary leadership, and many years of hard work to fix.A good start could be made by getting our public servants to become more efficient, and by jacking up the parastatals.The vast public service wage bill weighs heavily on the economy but, despite pockets of excellence, hard-pressed taxpayers are not getting the services they are paying for.The quality of education at state schools leaves a lot to be desired, the massive private security sector would be out of work if policing were up to scratch, our water and electricity infrastructure is crumbling, with new projects being endlessly delayed, healthcare at state hospitals is generally substandard, and red tape is choking small business.But our public servants are being extremely well remunerated.According to the Sunday Times, the government paid R392-billion to about 1.4million public servants in the past financial year, including R148-billion to teachers and other employees at state schools, and R54.3-billion to the police. The astronomical wage bill will soar to R437-billion this year if the government gives in to the demands of public-sector unions for a 10% pay hike.As we have seen with the Treasury, SARS and the Department of Home Affairs, the key to improved efficiencies in the public service is strong management and a culture of accountability.Employing skilled, technically proficient people in crucial jobs, as opposed to ''cadres'', is essential...