The institutions included the Ministry of Food and Agriculture, the Ghana Health Service, the National Development Planning Commission, the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Authority (DVLA), the Passport Office and the Nurses and Midwifery Council (NMC).

The event was on the theme: “Enhancing the resilience of the African public administration to support and facilitate the realisation of Africa’s nutritional needs during and post-COVID-19 pandemic.”

The day, which was commemorated under the auspices of the Public Services Commission (PSC), was sub-themed: “The role of the Fourth Industrial Revolution in re-imaging service delivery, provision and recovery during and post-pandemic”.

Instituted by the UN and the AU and marked every June 23, the day celebrates the value and virtue of the public service, highlights the contribution of the service in the development process, recognises the work of public servants and encourages young people to pursue careers in the public sector.

Objective

The Chairperson of the PSC, Dr Janet Ampadu Fofie, said the key objective of this year’s commemoration was to afford AU member states the opportunity to reflect and assess the efficiency of service delivery tools at their disposal during and after the COVID-19 pandemic and how the journey on the ‘Africa We Want’ had progressed on disciplines such as achieving food security, resilience in nutrition and other commitments under the SDGs and Agenda 2063.

She also said the event was to create enthusiasm among the public to access the services of public sector institutions and also demand quality delivery from public servants.

“It is expected that the 2022 celebration at the national level will, among other outcomes, result in the ability of member states to motivate public servants who performed creditably during the COVID-19 pandemic and also come up with new initiatives and innovations,” Dr Fofie added.

An academician and writer, Professor Esi Sutherland Addy, and the Commissioner of the PSC, Michael Aduhene Adu-Darko, underscored the need for public institutions and servants to employ information and communications technology (ICT) to improve on their delivery to enhance revenue generation.

Digitalisation

On the role of the Fourth Industrial Revolution in enhancing public services, representatives of the DVLA, the NMC, the Passport Office, among others, narrated how they were using digitalisation to drive their businesses for maximum benefit.

The representative of the DVLA, Mr Abraham Zato, spoke on the way digitalisation had transitioned the authority from what was described as one of the most corrupt institutions in the country, due to its cumbersome manual processes, to an admirable model of excellence in service delivery.

The Registrar of the NMC, Felix Nyanteh, said the council, with support from some partners, had digitalised its licensure examination and other services, which she said had led to cost-cutting and improved services.