Today we celebrate the United Nations’ International Public Service Day. International Public Service Day, which recognises that democracy and successful governance are built on the foundation of a competent civil service, is celebrated on 23rd June each year. The day is a global observance of public life, which aims to celebrate the value and virtue of service to the community.
Member states are encouraged to organise special events on Public Service Day as a means of highlighting the contribution of the public service in the developmental process. It is expected to also serve to encourage young people to pursue careers in the public sector. On this day throughout the world, public service organisations and departments celebrate, by holding various events intended to recognise the valuable role that public servants play in making improvements in society.
We celebrated the United Nations’ International Public Service Day in Anguilla for the first time last year. This year public officers throughout the Anguilla Public Service have made contributions towards the provision of gift baskets to families across Anguilla who are facing hardship at this time. While many public officers are also experiencing very trying circumstances, we are generally conscious of our good fortune in being able to earn a regular income, at a time when many persons are struggling financially. The idea of public officers sharing in this way was presented by an officer in the Department of Public Administration and was immediately embraced by other officers and decision makers. I offer commendations to the originator of the idea, to officials in the Department of Public Administration for co-ordinating this initiative and to public officers generally for embracing the idea. Service of this nature is always to be commended.
I wish to mark International Public Service Day 2014 by imploring managers in and out of the public service, to ensure that employees are afforded opportunities to equip themselves with the knowledge and expertise, required to offer the more conventional service expected by our customers. The Government of Anguilla in recent years has not been able to offer Anguillians generally and public officers in particular many opportunities for training, due to financial circumstances. I commend those persons who continue to find ways to engage in on-going learning and encourage public officers to avail themselves of any training opportunities offered.
It is incumbent on all of us to do what we can to ensure that we quickly return to a financial state, which will allow for the regular training of public officers and others, thereby equipping persons to offer quality service to all stakeholders. To assist in this regard Government officials must be diligent in the collection of taxes due to the Government of Anguilla; and citizens, residents and business entities must recognise and accept their responsibility to pay their taxes in a timely manner so as to assist in ensuring our sustainable development, well into the future.
I would like to believe that we will all do our best to ensure that we are not part of the reason for our failure to develop our human capital. It is my hope that our future actions will help to put Anguilla in a financial position, to offer appropriate training to appropriately selected individuals, who will then be able to offer service in and out of the Anguilla Public Service. I, therefore, look forward to us being able to offer training, in the very near future, at a level necessary to ensure Anguilla’s sustainable development and which by extension will ensure improvements in the welfare of citizens, residents and businesses on Anguilla.
