Freetown, 24 August 2010 -The Public Sector Reform Unit (PSRU) in collaboration with the Commonwealth Secretariat will be organising a three day forum of Government Ministers, Deputy Ministers and Permanent Secretaries on the priorities and operations of Government, with a view to creating an understanding of the importance of leadership roles and effective political-administrative interface for the achievement of national development objectives.

The workshop which will be held from the 13-15 September 2010 at the Miatta Conference Centre will serve as a forum of orientation for Ministers and Permanent Secretaries by providing them the necessary instrument to maximise productivity and improved service delivery.

The workshop is not only for role clarity among Ministers and Permanent Secretaries but to enable them to understand and agree on the priority national outcomes that the Government of Sierra Leone is currently focusing on, including the PRSP II/ Agenda for Change, the New Public Sector Reform Programme, and strengthen commitment and team work among Ministers and Permanent Secretaries towards the achievement of positive outcomes.

The workshop will create a forum to discuss and agree on the roles of Ministers and Permanent Secretaries and how they can effectively work together on the one hand and how they can effectively work with other branches of the state (the Judiciary and Legislature) and other stakeholders, for efficient and effective service delivery on a timely basis.

The workshop will enable Ministers, Permanent Secretaries and Heads of Department to discuss issues pertaining to the performance of their duties and their leadership role, learn from the experiences of other countries, and formulate strategies that will enable them lead the transformation of the country to the desired level as articulated in the national vision statement.

The workshop will use a variety of participatory methods to provide an opportunity to Ministers, Deputy Ministers and Permanent Secretaries to have candid discussions and come up with workable strategies for team work and delivery on national outcomes. These methods will include short presentations from facilitators to provide an overview of the issues to be discussed, group and plenary discussions. Presentations including group discussions and sharing of experience will form the basis for learning