The Government of The Gambia has expressed its desire to adopt some of Nigeria’s civil service reform strategies as part of efforts to strengthen public service delivery in the country.
The Secretary to the Cabinet and Head of the Civil Service of The Gambia, Mr Alieu Njie, stated this during a strategic study visit by a Gambian civil service delegation to Nigeria, on Monday in Abuja.
The study visit was sheduled from June 20 to June 24, focusing on public service reforms, knowledge exchange and institutional development.
The study visit was aimed at enabling the Gambian delegation to understudy Nigeria’s experiences in civil service transformation.
It was also designed to deepen cooperation between the two countries through peer learning and exchange of reform experiences.
Njie, while leading the delegation on a visit to the office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation (HCSF), praised Nigeria’s civil service operations, describing the country as a model for other African nations.
He particularly commended Nigeria’s civil service anthem, saying it was a tool capable of inspiring commitment and professionalism among public servants.
“Your civil service anthem is something that has moved me. It is something that any civil servant, if you listen to it every morning and sing the song every morning, you know how important it is.
“Obviously, it leads you in a direction. That alone is something I can confidently tell you will be part of my reforms,” he said.
The Gambian official described Nigeria as a “big brother” to The Gambia and Africa in general, noting the historical and institutional ties between both countries.
He said the two nations shared similar colonial backgrounds and had maintained strong cooperation in several sectors, including education, defence, health and the judiciary.
Njie said about 70 per cent of Gambian civil servants had received university education in Nigeria, adding that Nigerian professionals had continued to contribute to the development of key sectors in The Gambia.
He explained that the merger of the Office of the Secretary to the Cabinet and the Head of the Civil Service in The Gambia had enhanced coordination between policy formulation and implementation.
According to him, the arrangement made it easier to monitor the implementation of cabinet decisions and ensure effective service delivery.
“Being part of the cabinet where policies are formulated and also handling implementation makes my work easier,” he said.
Njie said The Gambia had introduced several reforms in areas such as pension, policy management, human resource development and public service restructuring.
He added that the country was now focusing on implementation, sustainability and change management.
“Our aim is to identify concrete measures that The Gambia can adopt to accelerate civil service transformation, and there is nowhere we can get it better than Nigeria,” he said.
He said the delegation was particularly interested in Nigeria’s large-scale digital platforms for personnel and payroll management, institutional frameworks for sustaining reforms, performance management systems, staff welfare policies, mentoring and retention programmes.
“We will return to The Gambia ready to translate lessons from this visit into concrete actions that will improve governance and service delivery for our citizens,” Njie said.
Responding, the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Mrs Didi Walson-Jack, said Nigeria was willing to share its experiences with The Gambia while also learning from the Gambian public service system.
Walson-Jack said the merger of the Office of the Secretary to the Cabinet and the Head of the Civil Service in The Gambia was not new to Nigeria, noting that a similar arrangement existed in previous years.
She said Nigeria had recently completed the implementation of its Federal Civil Service Strategy and Implementation Plan (FCSSIP) 2021–2025, which was extended to the first quarter of 2026, and had commenced preparations for a successor plan.
“We are now on the verge of developing the Federal Civil Service Strategy and Implementation Plan 2026–2030. As we go along, we will share insights with you from the past plan and how we are developing the new one,” she said.
Walson-Jack stressed the long-standing relationship between Nigeria and The Gambia, expressing optimism that the civil service partnership would be sustained through a formal framework.
“We are looking forward to structuring it in such a way that we could actually have an MoU because if our relationships in other sectors have been successful, I do not see why the one concerning the civil service should not be successful,” she said.
She described the engagement as a knowledge exchange platform that would benefit both countries.
Also, the Administrator of the Public Service Institute of Nigeria (PSIN), Mrs Imeh Okon, welcomed the Gambian delegation, describing the visit as a milestone in bilateral cooperation and strategic knowledge sharing.
Okon said PSIN remained committed to strengthening public sector capacity through training, research and innovation.
She noted that the institute, established as a reform-oriented think tank and premier training centre for the public sector, had continued to reposition itself to meet emerging governance challenges.
“This study tour is not a one-way presentation, but rather a robust bilateral dialogue. We are eager to learn from your unique experiences in governance and institutional development in The Gambia, just as we share our own,” she said.
She added that the visit would provide an opportunity for both countries to exchange ideas on human capacity development and public service reforms.
