Public services must act as catalyst for growth – Cameroon’s Prime Minister

Commonwealth countries in Africa need to sustain ongoing public sector reforms to enhance the recent economic progress made on the continent during the global financial crisis, according to the Prime Minister of the Republic of Cameroon.

Prime Minister Philemon Yang stressed the need for public services to act as a catalyst for growth during the economic crisis while speaking at the opening ceremony of the 7th Commonwealth Heads of African Public Service Forum in Yaoundé, Cameroon.

The three-day meeting, organised by the Commonwealth Secretariat in collaboration with the Government of the Republic of Cameroon, will focus on “Managing and integrating public sector reforms in an era of global economic crisis”.

In the keynote address to delegates, Mr Yang said: “My country is grateful to the Commonwealth for creating opportunities like this forum, for the exchange of views on the challenges facing public services in Commonwealth African countries. This is an opportunity to consolidate partnerships, with national governments in the process of public service reforms.

“Our countries need to sustain on-going reforms, in order to enhance the recent economic progress noted in Africa.

“We wish to commend the Commonwealth for raising the level of reflection, from discussions on the output of our public administrations, to probing into the outcome and impact of reforms. My government is anxiously waiting for the recommendations of your forum.”

Representatives from sixteen Commonwealth African countries will share their experiences of the challenges posed by the global financial recession on African economies and discuss strategies to integrate public sector reforms to ensure that public services can remain efficient, effective and act as an engine of growth in a changing global environment.

Predictions indicate that Africa may be the worst hit region if efforts are not made to alleviate the impact of the current crisis and to strengthen Africa’s resilience to similar crises in the future.

Acting Director of Governance and Institutional Development at the Secretariat, John Wilkins said: “The challenges facing many African countries in meeting the Millennium Development Goals by 2015 have been exacerbated by the current global economic crisis. There is a non-negotiable imperative to rethink public service delivery.

“Member states have an opportunity to share and learn from each other’s experiences in mitigating the impact of the global economic crisis while shaping reform strategies that are realistic and produce results.”

At the end of the Forum, the Heads will issue a Communiqué containing a summary of the issues discussed and the strategies agreed upon for possible adoption and implementation at the country level by member states.

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