Good Managers Needed to Fix Civil Service, Says Ex-NUC Scribe

Good Managers Needed to Fix Civil Service, Says Ex-NUC Scribe

POLITICS DIGEST – Is the Nigerian federal civil service at the level it ought to be, in this our 21st Century? Not everyone will readily say “Yes”.

However, Prof. Peter Okebukola, has proffered some innovative ideas on ways to reposition the civil service for effective performance in service delivery.

Okebulola, a former Executive Secretary of National Universities Commission (NUC), said the kind of education needed in the workplace in 21st Century involves critical thinking, problem-solving, creativity, innovation, collaboration and teamwork, digital literacy, flexibility and adaptability, social and cross-cultural skills.

He disclosed this in a paper he presented at a public lecture in Abuja yesterday.

The lecture was organized by the Office of the Head of Service of the Federation to commemorate its ongoing 2024 Public Service Week.

Prof. Okebulola also emphasized the need for strong leadership and accountability, entrepreneurship, use of technology, environmental literacy, resilience and stress management, among others.

The former NUC scribe said that the managers of the public service in the country must be forward-looking, with projections like how the civil would be in next 50 years in terms provision of various services to the nation.

Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Dr. Folasade Yemi-Esan, in her address, said the Service was already making efforts to groom best brains and the brightest in the Federal Civil Service to bridge skills gap and requisite knowledge needed to transform the Service.

She added that the Service is also grooming a new crop of leaders of high skills through the Leadership Enhancement and Development Programme(LEAD-P), as encapsulated in the Federal Civil Service Strategy and Implementation Plan 2021-2025(FCSSIP 2021–2025).

She explained that under the LEAD-P, that the Service has the goal to identify, mentor and train 500 future civil service leaders by the end of 2025, adding that already over 200 officers have been trained and deployed to various Ministries, Departments and Agencies(MDAs) of government.