Employee Engagement in the Public Sector: A Case Study of Western Africa

Abstract

Employee engagement and its relationship with organizational performance have recently gained immense attention amongst the scholars of organizational studies and human resource development. However, this relationship has widely been examined in the private sector organizations operating in the Western developed countries and its application in the African public sector still remains a major gap in the engagement literature. In order to address this gap, we investigate the different factors of employee engagement and their impact on organizational performance in the public sector of West Africa while taking the case of Gambia Ports Authority, one of the biggest public sector employers in Gambia. A case study approach was adopted with questionnaires designed and distributed to 327employees of the Gambia Ports Authority, one of the largest public sector employer in the Gambia. The survey included employees at different levels including senior managers, directors, and junior level staff. Findings suggest that various factors have significant impact on employee engagement with the exception of team and co-worker relation. Amongst other factors, leadership had the strongest influence employee engagement in African public sector. Overall, a positive relationship was found between employee engagement and organizational performance. Findings also indicate that employees who feel engaged and connected with the organization attempt to reciprocate and show greater enthusiasm towards work (work engagement) and to the organization (organizational engagement), which could lead to improved performance.