How One South African Civil Servant Safeguards Institutional Knowledge at CoGTA

In the sprawling corridors of South Africa’s Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (CoGTA), a quiet battle is being waged against the loss of institutional memory. When senior staff retire or move on, they often take with them a wealth of unwritten expertise—insights gathered over years of service, relationships built on trust, and practical lessons that never made it into a formal report. Left unchecked, that departure can erode the department’s ability to deliver consistent public services.

The hidden cost of turnover

Government turnover is inevitable. Yet each exit carries a hidden cost: the disappearance of tacit knowledge that lives only in the minds of departing employees. For a department that coordinates everything from municipal funding to traditional leadership matters, such gaps can translate into duplicated effort, slower decision‑making, and, ultimately, poorer outcomes for citizens.

Enter Shanti‑Gita Coetzer

As Assistant Director of Information and Knowledge Management, Shanti‑Gita Coetzer has turned that challenge into a strategic priority. Her mandate is simple but profound: capture, organise, preserve, and disseminate the collective know‑how of CoGTA so that today’s learning remains accessible to tomorrow’s staff.

From brown‑bag talks to digital archives

One of Coetga’s most visible initiatives is the series of “Brown Bag Sessions” that Shanti coordinates. These informal lunchtime seminars bring together subject‑matter experts, frontline workers, and policy analysts to discuss emerging trends, policy updates, or practical solutions to recurring problems. Behind each session lies a meticulous process: selecting relevant topics, recruiting speakers, designing invitations, and curating an audience that can both contribute and benefit.

But the work does not stop when the coffee cups are cleared. Shanti’s team records the discussions, transcribes key points, and uploads the material to a central knowledge repository. By doing so, they transform fleeting conversations into lasting resources that can be searched, referenced, and built upon long after the original participants have moved on.

Securing the exit: knowledge capture for retirees

Perhaps the most critical—and least visible—aspect of Shanti’s role occurs when an employee hands in their badge. Before the departure is final, she conducts structured interviews aimed at extracting tacit insights: the shortcuts that saved time, the pitfalls that led to costly rework, and the informal networks that kept projects on track. These narratives are then coded, indexed, and stored alongside official documents, ensuring that the department’s intellectual capital does not vanish with a single resignation.

Building a culture of continuous learning

Beyond the mechanics of capture, Shanti is championing a broader cultural shift. She works closely with CoGTA’s compliance officers to embed knowledge‑management principles into everyday workflows, from project planning to performance reviews. Her advocacy for clear governance, robust strategy, and transparent policy has helped the department move from a “store‑and‑forget” mindset to one where learning is seen as a shared, ongoing responsibility.

Small wins that add up

Shanti attributes her successes to teamwork. “Carpe Diem—seize the day,” she says, “because knowledge is power, but only when it is used.” Incremental improvements—such as a 30 % increase in the reuse of past project templates or a measurable drop in duplicated effort—demonstrate how consistent, modest gains can compound into substantial organisational resilience.

Why it matters for South Africa

CoGTA’s mandate touches every province and municipality, influencing service delivery for millions of South Africans. Effective knowledge management therefore becomes a matter of public interest: it safeguards the continuity of essential services, reduces wasteful spending, and enhances the department’s capacity to respond to crises—whether they be natural disasters, public‑health emergencies, or socio‑economic challenges.

Looking ahead

As Global Knowledge Management Week approaches, Shanti‑Gita Coetzer plans to showcase the department’s progress through interactive webinars, case‑study publications, and a renewed call for staff to contribute their insights. Her hope is simple: a future where the doors of CoGTA remain open to fresh ideas, while the lessons of the past stay firmly on the shelves, ready to be consulted.

In an era where information is abundant but attention is scarce, the work of people like Shanti reminds us that preserving what we know is as vital as acquiring what we don’t.