Serve with integrity, hard work – Vice President tells civil servants

Vice President Professor Naana Jane Opoku-Agyemang has urged civil servants across Ghana to renew their commitment to integrity, innovation and hard work as the country seeks to strengthen public institutions and accelerate national development.

Speaking at the 2025 Civil Service Awards ceremony on Friday, the Vice President said government policies and programmes could only achieve their intended objectives when public servants carried out their responsibilities with dedication, professionalism and a strong sense of duty.

She described the Civil Service as the engine of governance, noting that it plays a critical role in preserving institutional memory and translating government policies into practical programmes and services for citizens.

Prof. Opoku-Agyemang said the government was implementing a number of reforms aimed at creating a more efficient, responsive and effective public sector.

“These efforts include the National Public Sector Reform Strategy 2, as well as a new national framework to establish an independent commission focused on fair and transparent public sector compensation,” she said.

According to her, the reforms are intended to strengthen public institutions while improving the way government services are delivered to citizens.

She therefore called on civil servants to complement the government's reform efforts by demonstrating professionalism, innovation and accountability in their daily work.

The Vice President congratulated recipients of the 2025 Civil Service Awards, describing their recognition as a reward for discipline, commitment and excellence.

She said the achievements of the award winners demonstrated the positive impact that dedicated public servants could have on national development.

Prof. Opoku-Agyemang also reminded all civil servants that their positions represented a sacred trust from the people of Ghana.

She urged them to approach their responsibilities with a clear understanding that their decisions and actions directly affect the lives of citizens.

The Vice President also reassured public servants who did not receive awards that their contributions remained important to the country's progress.

She stressed that recognition through awards should not diminish the value of the work performed by thousands of other civil servants across the country.

The Head of the Civil Service, Dr Evans Aggrey-Darkoh, also challenged public servants to move beyond traditional bureaucratic routines and focus more strongly on delivering measurable results.

He urged workers to break down institutional silos and improve collaboration among ministries, departments and agencies.

Dr Aggrey-Darkoh further encouraged civil servants to embrace digital innovation and use technology to improve efficiency and public service delivery.

He called for a shift from simply focusing on doing things correctly to identifying and implementing actions that have a meaningful impact on citizens.

It is not enough to do things right; we must also do the right things that directly improve the lives of citizens.”

Dr Aggrey-Darkoh said existing legal provisions provided a basis for recognising and rewarding exceptional performance within the Civil Service.

According to him, such recognition was important for building a culture of accountability, professionalism and high performance across ministries and departments.

He encouraged every civil servant to regularly reflect on how their work could better serve the public and contribute to national development.

The messages from the Vice President and the Head of the Civil Service come as government continues efforts to reform Ghana's public sector, improve institutional efficiency and strengthen public confidence in state institutions.

The call for integrity, innovation and results-oriented public service also places greater responsibility on civil servants to ensure that government policies translate into tangible improvements in the lives of Ghanaians.