Africa-Press – Ghana. President John Dramani Mahama has acknowledged and hailed the vital work of Ghana’s public service workers, reiterating their dedication to nation building.
He said this on Wednesday in his remarks at the opening of the Public Service International (PSI) 14th Regional Conference for Africa and Arab Countries (AFRECON 2025) in Accra, on the theme: “Quality Public Service for Dignity”.
He reiterated that public sector workers were men and women whose daily work upheld the very fabric of their societies.
PSI is a Global Union Federation of more than 700 trade unions representing 30 million workers in 154 countries.
The President said under Ghana’s Reset Agenda, the vision for national renewal was focused on restoring trust in public institutions and ensuring that public service embodied efficiency, integrity, and a citizen-centered approach.
“We are strengthening the civil and local government service, expanding digital governance, and enforcing performance accountability across ministries, departments, and agencies,” he stated.
“Our reforms include a new public service performance management framework, the full operationalization of the human resource management information system, and a renewed focus on training, ethics, and merit-based advancement.”
He said the government would continue to work together with all the unions to achieve an effective public service, reflecting the values of justice, fairness, and respect for human dignity,
He said as Ghana moved toward a 24-Hour Economy, the public service remained the driving force behind this transformation.
He noted that a 24-Hour Economy relied on efficient and responsive public institutions, hospitals that operate around the clock, ports and customs offices that clear goods smoothly and seamlessly, and local assemblies that provide services without obstruction and delay.
He reiterated that the vision called for a new social agreement between government, labour, and citizens.
“It must be a partnership that is founded on fairness, productivity, and mutual respect. Our strategy, therefore, is to work collaboratively with organized labor to develop reforms rather than impose them. Because genuine reform only succeeds when it is done with workers and not over them,” the President said.
He said across Africa, public services were under tremendous strain, from debts, restriction, economic shocks, climate change, and the increasing commercialization of essential services.
“We must resist the trend of treating public services as commodities. When health care becomes a privilege, when education becomes a luxury, and when clean water is unavailable, we strip our people of their dignity,” he said.
“And that is why Ghana continues to advocate for equitable, people-centered public systems aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals and Agenda 2063 of the African Union.”
President Mahama said: “Public service is not charity. It is a human right. It is a cornerstone of inclusive growth and the most enduring symbol of social justice.”
He said the PSI conference, therefore, provided them with an opportunity to rethink the future of public service in Africa.
The President lauded the PSI for its relentless advocacy, ensuring that the dignity of labour, fair wages, occupational safety, and workers’ rights stay at the heart of public discourse worldwide.
Madam Britta Lejon, President of PSI, said public services ensured that society runs smoothly with PSI members, health workers, emergency services, water and energy workers, sanitation workers, teachers, social services and local and national administrations behind the scenes.
Dr Isaac Bampoe-Addo, the Executive Secretary of the Civil and Local Government Staff Association Ghana (CLOGSAG), said quality public services for dignity was entirely in the presumed anonymity, neutrality, and feminism of the public services.
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