Nana Kwasi Agyekum Dwamena, the Head of the Civil Service, has reminded Ghanaian workers to improve upon their customer service, explaining that the sovereignty of governance rests with the people.

He said excellent Customer Service was a sina qua non to rapid national development since the first impressions formed by a customer of a visitor to an organisation lingered on and informed the immediate and long term decision and actions of the visitor to the organisation, which would eventually impact on its fortunes.

By and large, Nana Dwamena explained, those impressions translated into the national development process that would help or hurt the nation in its development agenda.

Nana Agyekum gave the advice, at Parliament, when he addressed participants at the opening of a three-day training and capacity building programme in Customer Care for 30 persons, at the Parliamentary Training Institute (PTI), at the Parliament House, in Accra.

The programme is the maiden to be organised by the Institute since its inauguration last year, and the participants were drawn from 13 different institutions including Parliament, the Immigration Services, Ministry of Youth and Sports and the Electricity Company of Ghana.

Nana Dwamena explained that that public and civil service workers had a significant role to treat their customers well to attract their confidence to make the necessary input into the Government’s development agenda.

He decried the practice where some front desk workers treated people who visited an organisation with disdain and disrespect, ”as if they are a nuisance,” reminding participants to maintain a positive composure at work always. “Even on the cross, Jesus had a happy expression,” Nana Dwamena said, adding, “We are not developing at the rate we expect because the way we handle our Customer Service.”

The Civil Service Head underlined that timeliness, prompt response to customer issues and courtesy were very necessary to good customer service, and said all public service institutions should have client service centres.

“Even in church, people are being taught Customer Service,” Nana Dwamena said, adding, “I want you to go back believing you can be a change agent.”

Mr Emmanuel Anyimadu, the Clerk of Parliament, in a speech read for him by Alhaji Ibrahim Gombilla, Deputy Clerk of Parliament, said the growing demand of accountability by citizens presented a challenge to Public and Civil Servants, and workers in other autonomous bodies who had a stake in governance.

“Building the capacity of staff assures the needs and demands of all officers are met, which in turn helps to sustain institutions we work for as we are equipped with the challenges of tomorrow,” Mr Anyimadu said.

He stressed on the need to build on a strong governance sector workforce at a time when public expectation of improved delivery and good governance and democracy were rising.

Mr Ebenezer Ahumah Djietror, the Director of Legal Affairs of Parliament, described governance as “laborious”, which he said required the Arms of Government to be well equipped for efficient delivery of service.

He called on Government sector workers to examine themselves to see if they were giving of their best.

Mrs Gloria Sarku Kumawu, Head of the PTI, announced that the programme would not only highlight the importance of Service Standards and Customer Experience, but would also build on existing knowledge of Customer Service and Customer Care and help the trainees appreciate and think in a “customer-centric way.”

It would also lay the foundation for trainees to align behaviours to their organisations’ expectations of its staff in relation to Customer Care Service and develop understanding of Customer Care and the associated needs.