By Maryam Garba Hassan
The Federal Government has approved the creation of an additional Department of Economic Services at the federal Ministry of Women Affair and Social Development with immediate effect.
A statement signed by the Deputy Director Press, at the ministry yesterday in Abuja, Saghir El Mohammed, stated that the federal government, who also approved the professionalization of the Ministry, gave the approval in a letter with Reference Number OCHSF/MSO/24/111 of August 11, 2014, and signed by the Permanent Secretary, Career Management Office in the Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Alhaji Mohammed Abbas.
The Head of the Civil Service of the Federation has also approved that the Ministry be restructured into Nine (9) Departments and Seven (7) Units to provide added impetus for the realization of goals of the Ministry and the long term objectives of Vision 20:2020.
According to the statement, it is expected that the professionalization of the Ministry will result in a more qualitative workforce that can harness the organisational potentials of the Ministry to provide well-researched and focused policies, programmes and projects that will yield more efficient service delivery to women, children, Persons with Disabilities, the Elderly and other vulnerable Nigerians.
The statement added that the Ministry was also to intensify efforts at pushing for the enactment of “The Nigerian Institute for Social Works”, which has passed the second reading at the House of Representatives.
The statement said while government did not approve for the creation of Gender Officer Cadre but directed that a Department of Economic Services be created out of the Women Affairs Department and should have the Divisions of Cooperative Development and Skills Development.
The Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Development, Dr. Habiba Lawal, has thus pooled all existing Empowerment Desks in the four Professional Departments under the new department.
Mr. James Olowoofoyeku, the current Head of the Economic Services Division under the defunct Women Affairs Department has been appointed as the Acting Director of the new Economic Services Department.
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