The Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Didi Walson-Jack, has emphasised the importance of leadership training in driving service excellence, urging public servants to apply their newly acquired skills to enhance governance in Nigeria.
Speaking at the closing ceremony of the 2024 Aig-Imoukhuede Foundation Public Leaders Programme in Abuja, Walson-Jack commended the initiative for equipping public sector leaders with essential skills, knowledge, and mindset to drive innovation and excellence in public administration.
“This programme represents a significant milestone in our collective effort to strengthen the public sector and build a core of competent, ethical, and forward-thinking leaders who will drive transformative change in their respective organisations and communities,” she said.
She praised the AIG-Imoukhuede Foundation for its commitment to improving governance in Nigeria and across Africa, noting that some alumni of the programme were already contributing significantly to key reforms in the Federal Civil Service.
“Beyond the training received here, I’m particularly pleased to note that some of the alumni of this very prestigious programme are already working with me in my office, contributing actively to various reform initiatives,” she said.
Walson-Jack urged the participants to be ambassadors of good governance and apply the knowledge gained to improve public service delivery.
“With this training comes a greater expectation. Your institutions need your expertise, your innovation, and your commitment to excellence,” she added.
Former Vice President of Nigeria, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, in his remarks, underscored the critical role of an efficient civil service in national development.
“There is no real possibility of progress for a nation or government if its civil service, which is the real infrastructure for delivering public goods, is weak or inefficient,” Osinbajo stated.
He highlighted the importance of equipping public servants with the capacity to innovate, plan, and implement policies effectively, stressing that innovation is key to modern governance.
“The civil service holds the key to every nation’s success, not because civil servants are inherently special, but because by the very design of modern society, government is the legal and accepted vehicle that exists to make life better for the people,” he noted.
The executive vice chairman of the Aig-Imoukhuede Foundation, Ofovwe Aig-Imoukhuede, reaffirmed the foundation’s commitment to empowering public sector leaders with the necessary skills to tackle governance challenges.
“The AIG Public Leaders Programme has become more than just a contribution to the development of Nigeria and Africa’s public service. It has emerged as a game-changing initiative for building capacity within the civil service, both locally and across the continent,” she said.
She noted that through collaboration with the Blavatnik School of Government at the University of Oxford, the programme had produced four cohorts of exceptional public sector leaders equipped to navigate the complexities of modern governance.
The chairman of the Aig-Imoukhuede Foundation, Aigboje Aig-Imoukhuede, emphasised the importance of continued investment in leadership training for public servants, describing it as a key driver of effective governance.
He commended the dedication of the participants and encouraged them to translate their learning into tangible improvements in public service.
