The President, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, has described the newly crafted policy document for the National Service Scheme (NSS) as a paradigm shift which will enhance national development.
He said it was unfortunate that for the 50 years of existence of the scheme, there had not been any formal policy framework to offer direction to the scheme and the new policy would not only ensure focus but also provide the necessary impetus for the youth to contribute to national development.
Unveiling the 10-year strategic policy in Accra on Monday, President Akufo-Addo said the new policy demonstrated government’s commitment to unleash the energies of service personnel towards national development goals.
“The policy will enhance capacity, reinforce structures and enable the national service scheme to mobilise effectively the clearer increasing number of graduates to areas of national priority,” he emphasised.
The policy to be implemented from 2024 to 2034 would provide a structured framework for directing resources and efforts towards maximising state interests and aligning with the aspirations of service personnel.
The main focus of the policy include the deployment of personnel to national priority sectors crucial for socioeconomic development; the inculcation of national values in service personnel and the establishment of effective mechanism to measure achievements among others.
“This policy marks a significant milestone in our efforts to harness the potential of our youth towards nation-building,” the President emphasised.
He said by instilling national values and directing their efforts towards priority areas, the policy would help cultivate a sense of civic duty and drive sustainable development across the nation.
President Akufo-Addo said the government was ready to play its part in ensuring an effective implementation of the policy, adding that “I want to assure you that government is fully committed to providing the enabling environment, resources and the logistical support to ensure the successful implementation of the policy.”
In addition, he said the 10-year duration of the policy reflected a long-term vision, ensuring continuity and consistency in the deployment of resources and personnel and is poised to address key challenges and capitalise on emerging opportunities in various sectors critical to Ghana’s growth trajectory.
President Akufo-Addo said government had over the past seven years committed to the development of the human capital of the country through programmes such as the free senior high school policy, and free TVET programmes among other interventions.
“The free SHS programme has increased significantly. The number of institutional graduates with some 150,000 young Ghanaians graduating annually. As this number continues to rise, it is imperative that the national service schem, the institution responsible for transforming this critical mass strengthened.”
President Akufo-Addo said the broad consultative nature of the policy was to ensure that the policy reflected realities and enhance the image of Ghana both locally and internationally.
He urged all stakeholders to maintain the spirit of collaboration during the implementation process.
“I encourage the management of the National Service Scheme to leverage strong partnerships with domestic and international stakeholders to ensure the policy is successful.”
He added that government was committed to make available adequate annual budgetary resources for the successful implementation of the policy.
The Executive Director of the National Service Scheme, Mr Osei Assibey Antwi, said the new policy provided a concise and precise roles required of all stakeholders based on consensus.
“To ensure policy coherence, value for money and the determination of success, the policy will be subjected to diligent review. All programmes, projects and activities of the scheme will be aligned to the various policy strategies, monitored and evaluated on a regular basis,” he explained.
He emphasised that beyond the policy, the scheme needed to be strengthened, and significantly resourced to regulate mobilisation and deployment of personnel.
“I strongly believe that, this can be done by upgrading the scheme from its status to a more noble and standardised institution with properly defined structures.”
He therefore appealed to the President to fast track the process of changing the status of the scheme to an authority.
BY CLIFF EKUFUL
