By Ezra Ukanwa

HEAD of Civil Service of the Federation, HoCSF, Dr Folasade Yemi-Esan, has urged Ministries, Department and Agencies, MDAs, including the management and staff of the Commission to ensure continuous improvement in Quality Management System, QMS, in their delivery of services.

Yemi-Esan made this call after she received the official presentation of an International Organisation for Standardisation, ISO, 9001:2015 QMS certificate by the Managing Director, Digital Jewels Africa, Mrs Adedoyin Odunfa, on Monday, in Abuja.

The certification came on the heels of the commission’s fulfillment of all requirements of the ISO, as directed by the International Independent Certification Authority, MSECB, Canada.

In her Acceptance Speech, Dr Yemi-Esan, CFR stated that compliance with the ISO 9001:2015 means that standards are maintained throughout the three-year certification cycle, “since certification is not an end in itself, but the means to achieve continuous service quality improvement”.

Yemi-Esan expressed delight that the OHCSF is the first and only core MDA to achieve this feat of getting ISO certified within the public sector.

She opined that the certification of the OHCSF’s work processes empowers it to continuously provide quality, innovative, efficient, and people-centered services in accordance with International Standards and Recommended Practices (SRPs).

She said that the OHCSF is to henceforth be recognised as a Centre of Excellence, globally, saying ISO 9001:2015 QMS certification is the world’s most recognised QMS standard that provides the framework and guidance needed to help organisations, consistently, meet stakeholders’ expectations, regulatory requirements, as well as demonstrate continuous improvement.

While urging staff in the OHCSF to take full advantage of the Certification in the realisation of its vision and mission of transforming into a world-class Service, the HoCSF encouraged other MDAs to take a cue, so as to move the Service to the expected height.

Also, the Director, ICT in the OHCSF, Mr Dada Adeniyi was certified as QMS Manager, while five (5) other staff were certified as Team Leads for the five (5) Offices of the Permanent Secretaries in the OHCSF plus two (2) other Officers as Team Leads.

Earlier in her remarks, the Managing Director/CEO, Digital Jewels Africa, Mrs. Adedoyin Odunfa, while commending OHCSF for the laudable achievement of being admitted into the global ISO 9001:2015 QMS family, disclosed that given the centrality of the OHSCF to the Civil Service, the ability to streamline and simplify its processes to systematically imbibe a quality philosophy that delivers high-quality services to its stakeholders, is a game changer for the entire Service and the nation, as a whole.

Mrs Odunfa explained that ISO 9001 standards aim to develop a veritable systematic QMS in an organisation, adding that this involves streamlining, standardising and optimizing key processes to consistently meet customer/stakeholder requirements for enhanced satisfaction. This aligns with an organisation’s purpose and strategic direction, she stated.

She, however, cautioned that attaining the accreditation status is just the beginning of a continuous improvement journey anchored on a quality-oriented culture, further stressing that this will be monitored by MSECB, through annual audits.