Mrs Ibiene Roberts, Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Special Duties and Intergovernmental Affairs, says the Federal Government is working to digitise public service before the end of first quarter of 2023.
Roberts stated this when she formally presented the Standard Operation Procedures (SOP) to the Minister, Sen. George Akume, on Monday in Abuja,
She said the procedure was in line with the directives of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation (HOCSF) to Ministries Departments and Agencies (MDA).
Roberts said that all MDAs were to formally document and present the SOPs developed in their respective MDAs in hardcopies for ease of reference.
The permanent secretary stated that the office of the HOCSF in readiness for the process automation in the civil service deployed SOP Replication Team to core MDAs.
According to her, the team is to provide technical support and assistance in the development of SOP across the MDAs.
“For institutional memory, SOP is a step-by-step instruction that acts as guideline for an employee’s work processes and best describes the activities necessary to complete tasks in a particular schedule.
“It is an aspect of the Enterprise Content Management (ECM) with the mandate to digitise records and automate workflow to achieve overall improvement in information sharing and collaboration across the MDAs.
“When employees follow the SOP for a particular job, they produce a product that is consistent and predictable,’’ she explained.
Roberts said that the ministry was given the responsibility to cascade the development of SOPs in the agencies under its direct supervision for full operation of the ECM in the civil service.
“To do this, the Departmental Champions will be adequately trained to help cascade the SOPs to our agencies,’’ she said.
Receiving the documents, Akume said he was aware of the efforts of the HOCSF, Dr Folasade Yemi-Esan, in changing the narratives of work culture in the Federal Civil Service.
“The transformative initiatives of this present administration are crucial to ameliorate the challenges faced by the civil servants in the discharge of their duties.
“Today we are gathered here for the official presentation of SOP, developed by the ministry to serve as a guide for work processes for staff in various departments,’’ he said.
Akume said the resultant effects of the document would promote efficiency and effectiveness in job performance and delivery.
“This ministry was created to serve as strategic tool for grassroots development, effective implementation and monitoring of government policies and programmes for national development among others.
“For better public service delivery, I encourage you all to do due diligence in all work processes and also ensure proper conduct of government businesses within your purview,’’ he said.
He used the medium to admonish civil servants on need to adhere to policies and initiatives of the Federal Government while discharging their duties.
This, he said, would promote quality job delivery in line with the Efficient, Productive, Incorruptible and Citizen-Centred (EPIC) culture initiative of the civil service.
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