Green Fleet Management Practices in Public Service Delivery by Urban Councils: Case of Makonde District in Mashonaland West Province of Zimbabwe

Shakerod Munuhwa ,Munyaradzi Chibaro ,David Chikwere ,Ephraim M Govere ,J Kanyepe

doi:10.7176/jesd/11-10-20

Abstract

The discussion of green fleet management has gathered much momentum in public sector organizations over recent decades. Green fleet management is broadly defined as a broad concept that includes different approaches by which companies work with their supplier and or customers in order to improve the environmental performance of their operations. Although knowledge base exists in Zimbabwean public sector on green fleet management, there has been no comprehensive studies on green fleet management which has been conducted. The government of Zimbabwe as a controller of public sector organization needs to find new ways, with limited resources, to achieve maximum efficiency in fleet management by managing available resources and related risks. The value of the research is a holistic approach to the analysis of fleet management which has never been undertaken by the public sector. The research employed a descriptive research design which comprised administering of questionnaires to the respondents. The sample was selected using non-probability technique and 80 respondents were selected from the entire District of Makonde. Findings show that there is an association between methods of practicing green fleet management and company performance as measured by sales revenue per year. Therefore, it is benefitting business wise to practice green fleet management operational principles in public service urban councils. The aim being to make sure that the fleet maximises fuel efficiency, minimise vehicle costs whilst improving the safety, welfare of employees and reducing exposure to environmental damage. Key words : green fleet, public sector, fleet management, urban councils DOI: 10.7176/JESD/11-10-20 Publication date: May 31 st 2020

Highlights

Transportation is at the centre of logistics as it represents the physical movement of materials between points in a supply chain
The results show that the most cited definition of green fleet management was initiatives adopted by companies or councils
The results show that there is no standard definition of green fleet management at urban councils in Makonde district

Summary

Introduction

Transportation is at the centre of logistics as it represents the physical movement of materials between points in a supply chain. The research is motivated by the need for government to find new ways, with limited resources, to achieve maximum efficiency in fleet management by managing these resources and related risks. The value of the research is a holistic approach to the analysis of fleet management the public sector has never been undertaken. A common problem is that many senior managers and elected officials do not perceive government fleet operations to be a core business. Cost saving strategies for fleets in the public service delivery sector has been to defer capital expenditures by postponing the purchase of replacement vehicles rather than implementing cost saving strategies to deal with an efficient and effective fleet size for the organization.

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Results

Conclusion