It was a roll call of activities marking thirty years of achievements as the Federal Ministry of Women Affairs joined the various MDAs and the teeming International Community to participate in the Maiden International Civil Service Week organised by the Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation.
In the same vein, the Honourable Minister for Women Affairs, Hajiya Imaan Sulaiman Ibrahim, fsi who accompanied the President has hailed the initiative, calling it a laudable reform which will accelerate professionalism in the Civil Service.
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR, today set an ambitious new course for public administration as he opened the first-ever International Civil Service Conference at Eagle Square, Abuja, calling on civil servants everywhere to become “the quiet architects of stability, innovation and public trust.”
In a keynote address themed “Rejuvenate, Innovate & Accelerate!”, the President:
Placed the Civil Service at the centre of his Renewed Hope Agenda, describing it as “the platform for delivering national transformation.”
Announced an immediate Personnel Audit and Skills Gap Analysis across the Federal Civil Service to ensure “the right people in the right roles.”
Directed MDAs to embrace rigorous data governance, stressing that “data is the new oil—its value rises the more it is responsibly refined and shared.”
Confirmed welfare gains already approved, including the new national minimum wage, salary consequential adjustments and a Pension Bond Scheme.
Celebrated the launch of “Service-Wise GPT,” a home-grown AI assistant designed to speed policy execution and provide instant guidance on rules and procedures.
The President hailed international partners—the United Nations, United Arab Emirates, and others—for backing Nigeria’s executive leadership and digital-literacy programmes, and urged deeper collaboration “that lifts every nation through mutual respect, pooled innovation and collective wisdom.”
Commending Mrs Didi Esther Walson-Jack, OON, mni, Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, for “tireless pursuit of reform,” President Tinubu spotlighted tangible advances under the Federal Civil Service Strategy & Implementation Plan 2021-2025, including:
Service-wide digitisation and continuous-learning platforms
Performance-management roll-out anchored on clear metrics. These steps,” he said, “place innovation at the heart of public-service reform and build a future-ready, tech-savvy workforce.”
Hon. Imaan Sulaiman also commended President Tinubu on the landmark Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) to transform the Public Service Institute of Nigeria into a global centre of excellence
Declaring that the conference “must be more than a talk shop,” President Tinubu challenged delegates from Azerbaijan, Canada, Ghana, Kenya, Morocco, the UK, the US and Nigeria’s 36 states to return home “with renewed determination to infuse our systems with energy and purpose.”
“Civil servants are not supporting actors,” he asserted. “They are the central platform for the Renewed Hope Agenda—a future we can all look forward to with optimism.”
Earlier, Mrs Walson-Jack welcomed participants to “a defining moment for Public Service,” highlighting the conference’s self-funded model, the Aspire Stage for young civil servants to pitch solutions, and plans to digitally transform five state civil services as pilot projects.
With the President’s gavel, the 2025 International Civil Service Conference was declared open, promising deliberations that will “translate swiftly into action” and cement Nigeria’s leadership in public-sector innovation.
Signed
EmemMARIA Offiong anipr
AD/Head Press, Info & PR.
