Nkeyema Town Council recently participated in a sensitisation meeting focused on the Public Service Competence Development and Certification Strategy. This meeting, led by a team from the Cabinet Office’s Public Service Management Division, was aimed at heads of departments and human resource practitioners.
The strategy seeks to transform the public service by ensuring that employees are well-trained, competent, and high-performing. This transformation will be achieved through targeted training and development programs that enhance the necessary competencies of public service employees, ensuring they have the capacity to deliver quality services to the general public.
The team, led by Assistant Director Training Research and Standards at PSMD, Agness Ngondwe, highlighted that the strategy was launched on June 30, 2025, by the Secretary to the Cabinet in response to the declining work ethic within the public service.
Ms Ngondwe said that besides improving efficiency in the public sector, in-service training will be used to assess staff for promotions and confirmations for first-time appointments.
Speaking when he welcomed the delegation in his office on Wednesday, Nkeyema Town Council Secretary Mwiche Mudala expressed his support for the initiative, stating that it will help restore professionalism in the public service. He emphasised that the compulsory training and development for employees will empower institutional heads by ensuring they have staff members who are knowledgeable about their responsibilities.
The strategy will require in-service public sector workers to participate in various compulsory, role-specific training sessions offered by selected reputable institutions. Several heads of government departments attended the meeting, including Social Welfare, Community Development, Education, Forestry, and the Disaster Management and Mitigation Unit, along with the District Administrative Officer.
