The Head of Service (HOS) of Kogi State, Hajia Falilat Y. Musa, has charged Permanent Secretaries and Directors of Administration in the state civil service to cascade the knowledge acquired from the two-day Digital Transformation Training to staff in their respective Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs).
The HOS gave the charge yesterday in Lokoja at the closing ceremony of the training held at the Conference Hall of the State Secretariat Complex.
She was represented at the occasion by the Permanent Secretary, Administration and Public Service, Dr Aisha M. Atojoko.
The training, organised by the Kogi State Government in partnership with Tethered Atoms Ltd, was themed, “From Understanding Digital Transformation to Using the Tools Built for You.”
Atojoko described the participants as drivers of the state’s digital transformation agenda, stressing that they must ensure that the knowledge gained at the training gets to the lowest cadre of the civil service.
“You are the leaders in your MDAs. The success of this digital transformation depends largely on your ability to step down what you have learned here to your directors, desk officers and all staff.
“We cannot afford to have digital compliance at the top and analogue practice at the bottom,” she said.
She said the administration of Governor Ahmed Usman Ododo was committed to building a paperless and technology-driven public service in which official communication, records management and service delivery would be conducted electronically.
According to her, digital platforms already deployed by the state government, including the Smart Kogi App, KogiConnect, KogiVault, Head of Service Website and Career Portal, as well as the Training and Staff Improvement Management system, are designed to make government business faster, more transparent and accountable.
The Permanent Secretary further disclosed that digital compliance would henceforth form part of the requirements for career progression in the civil service.
“Passing prescribed digital examinations will be part of the requirements for promotion going forward. This is the new direction, and there is no going back,” she stated.
Atojoko urged the participants to lead by example, promote collaboration among MDAs and eliminate administrative bottlenecks capable of affecting service delivery.
She also commended Governor Ododo for approving the training, while appreciating Tethered Atoms Ltd and the facilitators for their technical support.
The two-day training ended with the presentation of certificates to participants and a renewed call for full implementation of the digital systems across the Kogi State Civil Service.