Yaw Osafo Marfo
Senior Minister, Yaw Osafo Marfo, has charged the Civil Service in Ghana to be competitive by harnessing the talents of the Ghanaian youth.
According to him, it is by bringing the youth on board and making good use of their capabilities that the Civil Service can go back to its former glory of serving the needs of citizens effectively and efficiently.
“If we want the public and the civil service to provide the service to the public competitively then we must provide merit as a means of progression … I don’t believe in people depending of their length of service only as a way of progression, if we do that we are stifling talents,” he said.
Mr. Osafo-Marfo made the call at the launch of the Emerging Public Leaders of Ghana program aimed at recruiting and training talented young, brilliant and goal driven final year students from Ghana to become competent Civil Servants who will improve public service delivery in Ghana.
He said the direction of Ghana’s development lies with the youth adding that the launch of the initiative by the Office of the Head of Civil Service (OHCS) in collaboration with Emerging Public Leaders (EPL) falls under one of the six pillars of government’s strategy to reform the public sector.
He was hopeful that the second cohort made of 20 graduates to undertake their national service in various ministries will offer their talents and capabilities for the rapid development of the country.
The Head of Civil Service, Nana Kwasi Agyekum Dwamena, in his remarks said the first cohort have received outstanding commendations from their respective supervisors in the Ministries they work.
“It is the hope of the Civil Service that, the efficiencies of the EPL Fellowship and its successes will be adopted and standardized across the Service; setting new benchmarks required to elevate the Service to higher heights.
He assured them of the continuous support to EPL Ghana as the two organizations share a common goal of attracting the best talents with leadership qualities required to achieving extraordinary social impact and drive Ghana’s developmental agenda.
EPL
In September 2018, EPL Ghana and the Office of the Head of CIVIL Service (OHCS) placed the inaugural cohort of 20 Fellows across nine (9) ministries and provided with responsive training and mentorship to become competent Civil Servants who will improve public service delivery in Ghana.
By Jamila Akweley Okertchiri & Rhodaline Naa Adjeley King