Public sector reforms must be internalised, not donor-funded – Senior Minister

The Senior Minister Yaw Osafo-Maafo has charged Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) to come up with creative internal reforms to secure funds rather than rely on donors.

Osafo-Maafo blamed the slow progress in the country’s public service on the reliance on foreign partners.

“All our reforms have been supported externally, and I think we should along the line begin to see an end to this external support. We should begin to internalise these reforms and do them ourselves.

“The civil and public service should internalise the reforms without any external stimuli, and should ensure that the country can by itself carry out the reforms without any external support in both human and material resources,” Mr. Osafo-Maafo said.

He made these statements at the official presentation of some vehicles and motorbikes under the Public Sector Reforms for Results Project (PSRRP) funded by the World Bank.

The senior minister further said a strong public sector is needed to efficiently provide the needs of citizens.

“We have to know that as the public sector, our duty is to support the growth of others, especially the private sector. Our services are not for sale: it is an act to support government operations.

"It’s the duty of the public servant to render services such as the provision of passports and driver’s licences to Ghanaians, and no citizen should have to beg or pay charges outside the regulated fees for these services,” he explained.

He also advised public servants to ensure that their actions do not make access to their services burdensome.