The civil service and an effective personnel management system are very key in the development of any country.
Without an effective functional civil service and personnel management set up, governments will find it extremely difficult to implement their development programmes and activities.
In fact, to us it is the main driving force for economic growth and development, without which economic development cannot be achieved.
We strongly believe that for there to be an efficient and effective civil service, there should be a strong human resource base, which must be backed with provision of the requisite knowledge and skills.
Thus, it is encouraging to see significant progress being made in the implementation of the Civil Service Reform Strategy, which has now been transformed into tangible programmes and projects.
The significance in the reform is the creation of innovative retention strategies that would enable the government to attract and retain quality human capital, for effective delivery of services to the public.
We must emphasise that these strategies must be intensified to build a more robust civil service that would be responsive to the needs and aspirations of the Gambian people.
While significant achievements have been made, thanks to the intervention of development partners like UNDP, we still believe there is more room for improvement.
The plight of civil servants should continue to be of utmost concern to the PMO, to ensure they are well-motivated.
It is fundamental that when people are encouraged and motivated they can effectively deliver.
It is now up to us as Gambians, both in the civil service and the private sector, to rededicate ourselves and work for the betterment of the country.
We have said in this and many other columns that the development of this country depends entirely on all Gambians irrespective of party affiliation, gender or status.
As much as government is trying to address the concerns of the civil service, the civil servants equally have a role to play in achieving their dreams.
They have to also change their attitude towards work, and to be more committed to meet the needs and aspirations of the country.
Our attitude towards duty must be driven by patriotism and nothing else, since the work we are doing is for our common good.
“Every good citizen makes his country’s honor his own, and cherishes it not only as precious but as sacred.’’
Andrew Jackson