The Delta House of Assembly on Thursday hosted a management retreat for its top management staff to strengthen the capacity of its bureaucracy,
The retreat which was facilitated by the State Assembly and the National Institute For Legislative and Democratic Studies (NILDS), has the theme: “Parliamentary Administration And Management for Effective And Efficient Service Delivery.”
The Speaker, Mr Dennis Guwor declaring the two-day retreat open in Asaba, noted that the retreat was aimed at equipping staff with cutting-edge skills to drive sustainable development and socio-economic growth in State.
He also said that the retreat was part of the commitment of the Assembly to strengthen the capacity of the Assembly bureaucracy.
”The 8th Assembly places high premiums on a workforce with cutting-edge skills. Our mission is “to build a vibrant, proactive and responsive legislature that guarantees sustainable development.
”While our vision is to be a leading legislature that drives the socio-economic development of the State through innovative and effective legislative interventions.
”These can only be achieved where you have knowledgeable, skilled and highly committed bureaucracy, ” he said.
Guwor who emphasised the importance of capacity building, cited recent training programmes organised for Committee Clerks, Legislative Aides, and executive officers.
He also said that retreat was timely, adding that it was the second management retreat under the leadership of the 8th Assembly.
”This time around, the leadership of the House collaborated with NILDS, a foremost institute solely committed to offer support and training services for the growth and development of the legislature, ” he said.
According to him, we have since the inception of the 8th Assembly embarked upon training and re training of not only the management staff, but the entire staff, including legislative aides.
The speaker noted that these efforts have yielded positive results, including the passage of seven transformative Bills into law.
He therefore urged the participants to develop a management work plan to support the members in lawmaking, representation, and oversight.
“This retreat should never be an end in itself, rather, how you apply the knowledge gained to your work that matters,” he added.
In his opening remarks, the Clerk of the Assembly, Mr Otto Aghoghophia, commended the speaker and the leadership of the assembly for approving the hosting of this retreat.
According to him, it was not a mere approval but was cash backed.
”Mr Speaker, you have demonstrated consistency in your leadership policy of building the capacity of the bureaucracy of the Assembly through training and re training of staff, ” he added.
Aghoghophia therefore urged the participants to ensure that the retreat was more engaging and beneficial to them.
Also, the Director-General of NILDS, Prof. Abubakar Sulaiman, noted bureaucrats play a vital role in the effective functioning of the legislature at both national and sub-national levels.
Sulaiman added that they also help to provide essential administrative and technical support to elected officials, serving as heads of departments, committee secretaries and principal aides to legislators.
According to him, their contributions are central to the success of legislative work
Represented by Dr John Olarewaju, a Senior Director from NILDS noted that in order to build a stronger and more responsive legislature, it was essential to invest in capacity building for legislative staff.
He said that the retreat would help to deeper the understanding of the participants on procedural dynamics of parliamentary work.
Meanwhile, some of the participants who spoke with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) commended the leadership of the assembly for the initiative.
According to Mr Smart Edoghe, Deputy Clerk Administration, I must commend the leadership of the Assembly for this great initiative. this retreat will help to broaden my knowledge in enhancing competency as a management staff.
The retreat features resource persons from NILDS, underscoring the Assembly’s commitment to leveraging expertise for effective governance.
