The Federal Government has said that despite the negative impacts of the COVID-19 on the nation’s socio-economic sphere, the civil servants would be at the fore front of helping the nation overcome the challenges.
The Director-General Bureau of Public Service Reforms (BPSR), Mr. Dasuki Arabi, said this on Wednesday in Abuja during the annual United Nations (UN) Public Service Day themed: “Building the Africa, We Want, through Enhancing the Impact and Value of Public Service Organizations to the Society”.
Arabi said at the event organised in collaboration with the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA), that over the past 10 years, Africa’s performance in Basic Health Services, for example, which assesses the extent to which the public are satisfied with how governments are handling the improvement of basic health services, has deteriorated.
“The Public Service and by extension Public Servants will serve as the tool that governments would use to sail this turbulence times,” Arabi said.
He also noted that the Africa’s economic growth has failed to generate sufficient jobs to match the increasing demand, and that other sectors have also fared badly.
He, however, said that notwithstanding, the BPSR through the National Strategy for Public Service Reforms (NSPSR) has a vision to have “a world-class public service delivering government policies effectively and implementing programmes with professionalism, integrity, excellence, and passion to secure sustainable national development”.
“It may interest you that the last decade brought about a digital revolution that changed the way we live, work, and govern. Technology and data driven innovations have increased the pace of our daily life, opened up information and elevated civil society voices and changed how we solve problems, design policy and deliver services,” he added.
Delivering the keynote, the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Mr. Boss Mustapha, said that throughout the world, the contributions of Public Service in promoting sustainable and equitable economic growth are receiving increasing attention because efficient and effective management of the Public Service are critical to sustainable socio-economic development of nations.
Represented by Permanent Secretary General Services Office (GSO), Office of the Secretary of Secretary to Government of the Federation (OSGF), Dr. Nnamdi Maurice, the SGF noted that over the years, the Nigerian Public Service has been an integral and key part of government, living up to expectation as it continues to provide the administrative service of design, formulation and putting government policies into action.
“It is the Public Service that ensures policy continuity and institutional coherence, thereby facilitating rapid attainment of national goals and sustainable development. The COVID-19 Pandemic has challenged everyone, including governance and its operation,” he said.
