Stephen Odoi-Larbi
7 October 2008
The Vice President of the Republic of Ghana, His Excellency Alhaji Aliu Mahama, on Monday, in Accra, called on delegates attending the 30th Annual African Association of Public Administration and Management (AAPAM) conference to enact policies that will strengthen public service Institutions on the African continent.
The Veep believed that an efficient public sector is the backbone towards achieving a rapid sustained economic growth and poverty reduction on the continent, in achieving the Millennium Development Goals.
Alhaji Aliu made this known when he officially opened the AAPAM Roundtable conference with the theme -'Enhancing the performance of the public service in a developmental state'.
According to him, the enhancement of the public sector would also serve as a main facilitator in helping the private sector in achieving its aim of driving the pace of national development.
"In Ghana, and I believe is the case with sister African and developing states, it has long been recognized that if these countries are well-led, organised and motivated to play its proper role, the public services will through efficient and cost-effective service delivery and improvement in productivity, become the main facilitator in helping the private sector drive the pace of national development", he said.
The AAPAM roundtable conference which would end on Friday, October 10th 2008, focuses on the condition of the African Public Service and identify the measures to be taken to enhance its performance to make it a more effective and efficient tool for the development of the States.
The conference thus provides an open environment for delegates to share information, identify and test ideas, exchange experiences and discuss strategies for raising the performance levels of the African Public Service in order to bring development and prosperity to the continent
The Minister of Public Sector Reform, Mr. Samuel Owusu Agyei said even though public service Institutions were doing their best in uplifting the economy to greater heights, it was facing some challenges which have become a hindrance towards achieving its goals.
He mentioned competition for investments and threats of marginalization as some of the problems affecting the smooth delivery of the public service Institutions, and called on leaders stirring the affairs of public service Institutions to wake to the call of the changing world.
Mr. Owusu Agyei noted "the environment within which public servants now work is changing rapidly. Externally, we face keener competition for investments and threats of marginalization. The global phenomenon, combined with the technologically driven information and communications revolution means that public managers must think and act on a transnational basis".
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