5,000 Documents digitised by Records and Archives Department

The Public Records and Archives Administration Department (PRAAD) of the Office of the Civil Service has completed the digitisation of over 500,000 documents.

In addition, a website has also been developed to provide access to the digital documents.

“The digitisation will ensure the long-term preservation of records for posterity. This exercise will continue in 2021.” The Head of the Civil Service, Nana Kwasi Agyekum-Dwamena, said this at the launch of the 2020 Civil Service Week Celebration in Accra yesterday.

The one-week event is on the theme: “Civil Service and private sector synergy: A national development imperative”.

Among activities lined up for the celebration are a public lecture, an open day, a clean-up exercise, a health day and an awards ceremony.

He explained that the event was to provide a platform for civil servants to engage with the public and the private sectors to identify potential areas of collaboration for job creation, prosperity and equal opportunity for all.

Technology

Nana Agyekum-Dwamena said as part of embracing technology, the Ministry of Communications had also rolled out a smart workplace platform to enable all ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs) to conduct government business in a more secure environment.

Also, he said, the Office of the Head of the Civil Service had an active social media account that provided information on its operations and activities and a platform for interaction with the public.

“The Civil Service has embraced technology to work smarter and improve its services. We have substantially digitised work systems and processes in MMDAs. In adopting the new normal, I believe our digital space will continue to be adequately utilised as work progresses steadily,” he added.

He said to ensure more competition and a credible and transparent recruitment system, his outfit last year improved on its computer-based civil service recruitment and examination system, adding that the service had also introduced an online promotion exercise to facilitate the speedy promotion of officers.

“Currently, about 1,500 officers are undergoing the virtual promotion exercise. This process has helped to reduce the sheer number of staff coming into the office, allowed officers to go through the interview process in the comfort of their offices and also eliminated cost,” the Head of the Civil Service said.

Reforms

Nana Agyekum-Dwamena further said a public-sector-for-results project, launched by the President in 2018, was currently being implemented as part of the national public sector reform strategy in selected civil and public service organisations.

To improve client service, he said, his outfit would also monitor service standards by deploying “mystery shoppers” to various MMDAs to assess quality of services provided for clients.

“As we approach an election period, we have to remind ourselves of our core value of impartiality and our role as Civil Service staff,” he admonished members.