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Adopt innovative ways and strategies to enhance work – Dr. Nana Ato Arthur to public servants
The Head of Local Government Service, Dr Nana Ato Arthur has urged Local Government Administrative Officers to adopt innovative ways and strategies that would enhance the work of the local government service and ensure quality service delivery to the public.
He said innovation was the new currency for development and added the need for local government administrative officers to build upon their skills, enhance their competencies and bring them on board the service.
“The world has changed into a digital one with innovation becoming the new currency driving it and we need to take advantage of it,” he said while he advised them to adopt innovative ways by providing institutional memory, and identify alternatives to enhance their capabilities for effective service delivery.
Dr Nana Ato Arthur was speaking at the 4th Annual Conference and General Meeting held in Koforidua organised by the Ghana Association of Local Government Administrative Officers (GALGA).
The two-day conference, on the theme “Building the Capacity of the Administrative Officer for Effective Delivery” brought together GALGA members made up of coordinating directors, budget planning officers and financial officers, among others, from across the country to review their performance and share information and ideas to sharpen their skills to better deliver quality service to the public.
Speaking on the theme, Nana Ato Aurthur said there was a need to build the capacity of the administrative officers as per section 51 of the Local Governance Act to secure effective administration and management of the decentralized local government system in the country.
He said in addition to innovation, the officers must exhibit leadership, good management and ethics if they wanted to achieve effective and efficient service delivery.
“As professionals in this service, the expectation on you is very high within the decentralized local governance system and you are required to contribute to the creation of excellence in local governance by advocating and developing professional management in the regional coordinating councils and metropolitan, municipal and district assemblies where you find yourselves,” he noted.
He said the local government service was faced with a challenge of change with the new performance management concept shifting from working in silos to working as a team, hence the need for the officers to embrace interdepartmental and inter-sectoral cooperation and collaboration to serve their clients in the various MMDAs.
The Head of Local Government Service, called on them to show respect to their clients and practice the ethics of the job as professionals whose service delivery was pivotal in the work of the MMDA.
For his part, the National President of GALGA, Mr Edmond Osei said the conference was essential to improve service delivery offered by the administrative officers to meet the current expectations of the public.
He said the theme for the conference would ensure that the officers build their capacity and competencies to make them more qualified and capable of delivering in their offices.
From Ama Tekyiwaa Ampadu Agyeman, Koforidua
Ghana’s First Lady, Lordina Mahama, has made a generous donation to the country’s national female Under-17 and Under-20 teams – Black Maidens and Black Princesses- as they continue preparations for major international assignments.
The donation, made on Friday, May 22, was presented on behalf of the First Lady by the Minister for Gender, Children and Social Protection, Agnes Naa Momo Lartey, at the GFA Technical Centre in Prampram.
The gesture forms part of efforts to motivate and support Ghana’s young female footballers as they prepare to represent the country on the international stage.
The donation included essential food items and toiletries aimed at supporting the welfare and well-being of the players and technical teams.
The donation included cartons of Milo, T-rolls, soft drinks, toiletries, and a range of essential supplies aimed at supporting the welfare of the players, enhancing camp conditions, and easing preparations ahead of their respective assignments.
The Black Maidens are currently engaged in preparations for the FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup qualifiers and are set to take on Liberia women’s national under-17 football team in the second-leg encounter in Liberia this weekend.
Meanwhile, the Black Princesses have already secured qualification to the FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup after overcoming Uganda in the qualifiers, extending Ghana’s remarkable record to eight consecutive appearances at the tournament.
The donation by the First Lady was expected to boost morale within both camps while reinforcing national support for the young female footballers who continue to make the country proud.
The prosecution has officially rested its case in The Republic v Solomon Asamoah & Another, the high-profile legal battle commonly referred to as the “Sky Train” case.
The Deputy Attorney General Justice Srem Sai announced the development, praising the state’s team of hard-working prosecutors for successfully anchoring the state’s evidence before the High Court.
The criminal trial centers on the former Chief Executive Officer and the former Board Chairman of the Ghana Infrastructure Investment Fund (GIIF).
The duo stands accused of illegally authorizing and paying out US$2 million to a foreign company without obtaining board directives or other mandatory statutory approvals.
State investigators have confirmed that the disbursed millions cannot be found.
Following the closure of the prosecution’s case, the accused persons moved the court for an opportunity to file a submission of no case.
The presiding judge granted the application, ordering the defense to submit their arguments by June 8.
The outcome of the June 8 filings will decide the fate of the trial:
With this, if the judge finds the defense’s submission convincing, the accused will be acquitted and discharged however, If the judge dismisses the submission, the court will order the accused officials to take the stand and explain why they should not face prison sentences.
By Edem Mensah-Tsotorme
