By Lamin B. Darboe
Information Officer, PMO
Director, Human Resource Development Division Personnel Management Office (PMO) has revealed the training budget earmarked for long-term training for Civil Servants for 2022 was D47, 000.000.
Lamin Saidy made this revelation in an exclusive interview with the PMO Information Officer at his office in Banjul.
Mr. Saidy catalogued the training budget of the PMO from 2019 to 2022 as follows: In 2019, D45, 000, 000, 2020, it was increased to D102, 000,000 but this was later scrapped reallocated to fund National Covid-19 interventions while the 2021 budget was D45, 000,000 and D 47, 000,000, for this year.
He further disclosed out of this budget 33 civil servants were awarded scholarships in 2019, mainly to pursue Master’s degree programs within and outside the country.
In 2021, 56 civil servants were offered scholarship, and there were no scholarships in 2020 since the training budget was zeroized.
“In 2022, over 40 civil servants have been awarded scholarships to pursue Master’s degrees and other specialized training programs. These degree programs and specialized trainings reflect the priority training needs areas identified by the MDAs,” Saidy revealed.
He also explained that PMO receives both long and short-term bilateral scholarships from friendly countries such as the People’s Republic of China, India and Egypt.
He added that a first cohort of 25 senior government officials, which comprised 7 Permanent Secretaries and 18 Deputy Permanent Secretaries attended a two-week long training course in New Delhi, India in 2019.
Saidy also reported the second cohort of senior government officials led by the Permanent Secretary at PMO, Mr. Lamin F. Jawara, recently returned from a week long training on ‘Public Policy and Governance’ in New Delhi, India.
“My Unit (HRDD) is responsible for the management and coordination of training of civil servants in the areas of study leave with or without salary, bonding, collaterals, secondments and training clearances. The Unit also is responsible for human resource development (capacity building) for the entire Civil Service,” he said.
According to the director his office has over the years made proud achievements with the creation of training committees, promotion and domestication of training of civil servants (15 training providers), training clearances focusing on relevance and cost-effectiveness of trainings; more civil servants undergo both long and short terms trainings; ease burden on civil servants to deposit collaterals at PMO to undergo long-term trainings (zoning of collateral requirements) and Creation of functional Training Management Information System (TMIS).
This according to Mr. Saidy, will enhance proper storage and retrieval of data for informed decision-making on trainings; Promotion of paperless Scholarship Committee and Training Committee meetings).
He said all these efforts are geared toward improved service delivery for the citizens and residents of the Gambia.
The HRDD under Mr. Saidy’s leadership, won the ”2021 Division of the Year Award” within PMO.
