Staff better equipped to deal with social welfare issues |05 May 2011

The certificate presentation ceremony was held last week at the Social Welfare Agency offices, Oceangate House.

Chief executive of the agency and fund Jacqueline Pierre said during the reform period, the government has put a lot of emphasis on the need and importance of training for staff.

She said both departments are always in the limelight as they offer services to the public and it is important to equip staff with new skills to better deliver quality service.

Customer service is one of the important aspects in service delivery and it was necessary to equip these 26 workers with new knowledge and skills in this line, Miss Pierre said.

“We have received complaints from members of the public and we have worked on these weaknesses,” she added.
The training, the first of a series to be followed, will be ongoing for six months.

The certificates were presented by the principal secretary for social development Linda William-Melanie, who urged the workers to use the skills acquired to better deliver good service.

Also present at the ceremony was Lorraine Blanck, a consultant from the World Bank who is carrying out a study at the agency to identify its weaknesses and to put forward recommendations which will bring more improvements to the Social Welfare Agency and Social Security Fund.