I would like to thank you for the invitation to address today's event, which is my first since taking up my new duties. I consider it significant as the reform of the Civil Service is an issue to which I have devoted a lot of energy and it gives me great pleasure to see it being implemented.
It is important that several Ministers/Directors-General are here today. It is you who will positively communicate acceptance of the reform to staff and make them feel secure.
Having served for 25 years in the Civil Service I have experienced what yearbook and seniority means. I have seen many promotions made, not on merit but on the basis of the date of birth on the ID card of candidates for promotion or recruitment. The reform went through a thousand waves until it was finally passed in 2022. There will certainly be weaknesses during its implementation but it is still a very big step forward.
Improving the quality of a country's public administration and governance is a key factor for its economic performance and the well-being of its citizens. An efficient public administration serves the needs of citizens and businesses and helps the country's image abroad in becoming an attractive place for investment.
This reform cannot be seen in isolation but as an effort that is part of a broader strategic planning to create the necessary momentum, achieve objectives and exploit any synergies. This is why it was included in the reforms of the Recovery and Resilience Plan, but it is also included in the actions of Vision 2035, the new Long Term Strategy that will define the Cypriot economy and society.
I would like to stress that the reform of the public sector, which was a priority of the previous government, continues to be a very important priority for the current government, and I would like to explain why.
The Cypriot public service can no longer meet modern requirements, operating with the structures and procedures that were largely formed in 1960. The data and requirements have now diversified, requiring new skills, methods and procedures.
The establishment in the public sector, for the first time, of Assessment Centres, even from middle management positions, is a key parameter of the reform and I believe that it is this parameter which will really contribute to the promotion of meritocracy in terms of promotions.
Evaluation Centres, which are a practice followed both in the private sector and in public organisations such as the European Commission, have the effect of recruiting and/or promoting the best, the most deserving, those with the most skills.
I will also help to change the culture that the best supervisor is not necessarily the one who knows the subject matter best, but the one who knows how to empathetically manage his/her staff, lead the team, set goals and see them achieved by working as a team.
These are the skills that should be assessed in Examination Centres to select the best for the job and I hope that this will be achieved through the work we have come to hear about today. A project which, with the support of the European Commission's Directorate General for Reform, will result in the creation of a modern examination centre. An important factor in any change, and this is a big change, is the involvement of all those involved in its implementation.
Civil Service reform was necessary to make competent, hard-working and goal-oriented civil servants feel, and believe me there are a great many of them, vindicated. To be properly motivated to continue to be effective. It was something that was repeatedly demanded by society itself so that it could be served properly.
In conclusion, I would like to wish both the members of the EDI and its staff every success in carrying out this pioneering yet difficult task. I also want to promise them that I will personally stand by them in this very important endeavour and support them in any way I can. I would also like to thank the Contractor, PWC, and wish them every success.
I wish them every success in the work of today's workshop.
Thank you for your attention.
(PM/IC)
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