The Edo State Government has reiterated its commitment to digitization of its processing and building the capacity of civil and public servants to better deliver services to Edo people in 2022.
The Edo State Head of Service, Anthony Okungbowa Esq., who disclosed this in his New Year message to workers, thanked the Edo State Governor, Mr. Godwin Obaseki, for not only identifying the civil/public service as the engine of good governance, but also setting necessary machinery in motion to revolutionalise the Service to deliver better service to Edo people.
According to him, “I heartily welcome you all to a brand new Year 2022. I thank God Almighty for the opportunity to see the end of Year 2021 and witness the beginning of a new one. It is my prayer that we experience more progress this year, both individually and collectively in our bid to build a virile civil/public service whose operations and processes are consistent with international best practices, in line with the vision of our Governor, Mr. Godwin Nogheghase Obaseki.
“I must thank Mr. Governor for not only identifying the civil/public service as the engine of good governance but also setting necessary machinery in motion to revolutionalise the Service to deliver better services to our people. These efforts birthed the Edo State Transformation and Enhancement Project (EDOSTEP) in the public service into which Mr Governor has committed enormous financial, time and intellectual property resources. Although this project started in 2020, it was however intensified and agressively implemented in Year 2021.”
Stressing on the administration’s commitment to strengthen to transformation of the public service, he said: “As Mr Governor has oft- remarked, the strategic importance of this reform effort largely occasioned the need for some delay in the formation of Mr Governor’s second term cabinet as Mr Governor felt the need to strengthen the Service before bringing political actors on board. The success of the project, so far, is a direct fall-out of this committed, reform- minded and service- oriented leadership style of Mr Governor.”
He continued: “Over the past one year, the transformation effort has seen fundamental adjustments in the governance architecture and processes of the Public Service and has resulted in a new, significantly improved structure launched on the 1st November, 2021.
“Government has continued to place a high premium on the welfare of Public Servants. Salaries are being paid regularly and promptly, inspite of daunting economic challenges. Duty Tour Allowances of Civil/Public servants have been upwardly reviewed and promotions have been approved up to 2021.
“Government has also implemented several other key policies that have or are expected to significantly impact on the morale of public servants as well as the general efficiency of the Service. For instance, the extensive review of the Civil Service Rules which was last done about 20 years ago has been completed. The proposed new Rules are designed to address the challenges that have impeded growth and development in the Service and made it incapable of playing its role effectively, over time. Hopefully, when the new rules are approved for adoption and become effective this year, the Service will breath a fresh air of relief and become even more efficient and productive.”
On the digitization drive, “Government is aggressively pursuing the digitalization of the Public Service and it is expected that this novel initiative will significantly change the narratives in terms of service delivery. Over the past one year, Government continued to prioritize intellectual property resource development and invested heavily in the training and re- training of Public Servants for optimal performance. New and more effective performance management initiatives have also been developed and introduced.
“Apart from the investment in public service infrastructure, Government also made significant effort to address the personnel deficit in the system with the employment of nearly 300 new employees across all cadres in the Public Service last year. It is important to observe that this exercise was entirely merit-based.”
On the harmonious relationship with the organized labour, he said, “I must specially thank the Organized Labour for their continued support which has helped engender industrial harmony in the State in the past one year. Special thanks must go to you for seeing the imperatives of a transformed public service to the delivery of democracy dividends and for your understanding and co- operation in the course of the arduous task of effecting changes to an otherwise traditionally rigid institution.
“Your partnership and support have been most invaluable in the implementation of the Change Agenda in the Service. I assure you that Government will continue to do its part to sustain the existing cordiality and partnership with Labour through engagement and dialogue as well as employing proactive ways in tackling labour issues in the Year 2022.
“It is my hope and expectation that the increased dedication, commitment and productivity occasioned by Government reforms in the Civil/ Public Service will be sustained this year as the Civil/Public Service continues to play a vital role in helping Government deliver on its Development Agenda. I wish you all a happy and a very prosperous New Year 2022.”
2022 NEW YEAR ADDRESS BY GOVERNOR GODWIN OBASEKI
As we usher in 2022, let us thank God Almighty that we are able to witness the beginning of another year.
In spite of the challenges and uncertainties experienced in 2021, there is a lot which we should be grateful to God Almighty for.
Despite witnessing two waves of COVID-19 in 2021, the mortality rate which we recorded in Edo State was far less than was projected.
This persisting COVID pandemic is a clarion call for us to pay more attention to our environment and also strengthen our healthcare system. Consequently, the reform of our healthcare system is now a very high priority in our ongoing transformation of the entire governance structure of Edo State.
Confident that Edo citizens will continue to subscribe to the Edo Health Insurance Scheme which will provide the long-term funds to sustain our new healthcare system, we are now revamping 100 additional primary healthcare facilities while building our network of specialist hospitals in the three senatorial districts. Our healthcare reform in Edo will also include encouragement of the private sector to invest in providing quality healthcare.
We are encouraged with the progress in our transformation of the public service and we are confident that with the ongoing recruitments, introduction of technology and the emphasis on training, our citizens will begin to receive better quality services from their government.
The construction and rehabilitation of roads are currently going on across the state. Even though the extended rainy season delayed the commencement of work, we are optimistic that significant portions of work will be completed before the next rainy season. We are also focusing on other infrastructure such as electricity and fibre connection. Our operation Light Up Edo is in full gear with the streetlighting project being rolled out in Benin City, Ekpoma and Auchi.
We are working with a private provider to connect all our 18 local government areas with fibre optic connection to enhance access to the internet and expand the digital economy across the state.
The physical and digital infrastructure we are laying across the state, including the proposed Airport in Edo North, will position Edo State as a major commercial hub in Nigeria and West Africa.
Investing in our people will continue to be a priority in 2022 as we rollout the EdoBEST framework to all tiers of education in the state. We are building shared production facilities in 6 technical colleges across the state to support the technical training of our youths while promoting technical entrepreneurship in these communities.
The successful take-off of the Edo Tech Park with the graduation of the first set of highly-trained software engineers and developers has spurred us to commence the construction of the permanent site for the Edo Tech Park. We hope the first phase will be ready for use in 2022, thus ensuring Edo’s position as a tech hub on the African continent.
In addition to exposing them to technology, we are supporting our youths in entrepreneurship and innovation to seize the moment and build top-of-the-range capacity to compete with their peers globally.
We are expending resources to boost opportunities in the creative industry with the establishment of the Victor Uwaifo Creative Hub and Soundstage.
As a government, we will continue to deepen our development strides following from the gains made in the last five years. Our emphasis will continue to remain on building capacity, deploying technology, promoting innovation, enhancing growth of the productive sector and leveraging our Diaspora population to drive sustainable development.
In the new year, we are recommitting ourselves to deepen growth across all sectors of the state and providing more opportunity for our people to realise their full potential. These we will do by leveraging the innate abilities of our people and providing them with the tools and enablement to dominate and conquer the world.
Let me appreciate and commend the effort and services of all our security agencies particularly our vigilante network who continue to work and sacrifice to keep us safe.
Our relative success in securing Edo particularly in the last few months is the result of the collaborative effort of these agencies. Our support will be extended in the new year to training of our vigilante network in the Nigeria Police Force training facilities in Ogida Barracks which has been refurbished by the Edo State Government.
In the areas of agriculture, tourism, infrastructure, energy, electricity, healthcare, education and security, we are changing the way government works and delivers services to Edo people.
As we fulfil this mandate to you, we urge you all to live up to your own civic responsibility by paying your taxes. We are revamping our tax administration system to make it easy for you to pay your taxes with the use of technology.
We urge all Edo people to approach the new year with renewed hope in our political system. Our goal is to make sure that in Edo, democracy has full expression and we only vote for candidates with demonstrated evidence to add value to our society.
I reassure the good people of Edo State that I will continue to strive to do only that which is in the best interest of Edo State and Edo people.
I wish you all a happy and safe 2022.
