Importance And Functions Of Civil Service In Nigeria. Nigeria is a great African country that gained independence on October 1, 1960. The colonial leaders of this country were the British. Nigeria has three arms of government: the executive, the legislature and the judicial. The executive is the arm of the government concerned with the well-being of citizens of this country. The legislature is the arm of the government responsible for making laws in the country. The judiciary is the arm of government responsible for the interpretation and application of the law. The executive is headed by the President of the country. The legislature is headed by the Senate President. The judiciary is headed by the Chief Justice of the country.

Importance And Functions Of Civil Service In Nigeria

Importance Of Civil Service In Nigeria

The executive is concerned about the citizens of a country. All its actions are aimed at helping the citizens of the country. Among the primary responsibilities of the executive is to provide free healthcare, free education, etc. The way the executive of this country chooses to reach out to the citizens of the country is through civil service. The civil service is a body of people that help the executive render free, affordable or inexistent services to the citizens of the country.

Functions Of Civil Service In Nigeria

The civil service is the medium through which the government can reach the people. The service helps provide free, affordable or inexistent services to the people. An example of free service is free child delivery made at some government hospitals. At private health centers, child delivery always attracts some amount of money. However, some government hospitals make a delivery for pregnant mothers at no cost. An example of affordable services are operations done at affordable prices. For instance, a person who goes to a private health center to do an appendix operation will be charged a substantial amount of money. However, at some government hospitals, appendix operations are carried out at affordable rates. An example of an inexistent service is when there was no private telecommunication company in the country. NITEL, a public service unit, stepped up and provided telecommunication services in the country before private telecommunication companies appeared.

Functions Of Civil Service In Nigeria

1. Provisions Of Health Care Services

One of the functions of civil service in Nigeria is to provide free, affordable or inexistent health care related services to the people of the country. There are a lot of government hospitals where these services can be got. The division of the Nigeria Civil Service responsible for healthcare-related services is the Ministry of Health. The current Minister of Health is Professor Isaac Folorunso Adewole. Professor Isaac Folorunso Adewole is assisted by a permanent secretary. The Ministry of Health is further divided into departments. We have the following departments: Department of Family Health, Department of Public Health, Department of Planning Research and Statistics, Department of Hospital Services, and Department of Food and Drugs Services.

Parastatals under the Ministry of Health include National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA), National Agency for Food & Drugs Administration and Control (NAFDAC), National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) and National Institute of Medical Research (NIMR). The National Agency for Food, Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) is located at Festival Road, Area 2, Garki 11, P.M.B. 5023, Garki, Abuja. The National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) is located at Plot 297, Shehu Yar’Adua Way, Utako District, Abuja. The National Primary Health Care Development Agency is located at Plot 964 Off Aminu Kano Way Zone A7, Wuse, Abuja. The National Institute for Pharmaceutical Research and Development (NIPRD) is located at Idu Industrial Area, P. M. B. 21, Garki, Abuja. The National Programme on Immunization (NPI) is located at Plot 1266 Ahmadu Bello Way Area 11, P.M.B 511, Garki, Abuja.

Importance And Functions Of Civil Service In Nigeria

2. Provision Of Education Services

The provision of free or affordable high-quality education is one of the functions of the civil service. Every citizen is the country has the right to good education in the country. The way in which the government implements this is through the Ministry of Education, under the civil service. The Ministry of Education is located at Block 5A (8th Floor), Federal Secretariat Complex, Shehu Shagari Way, Central Area, P.M.B. 146, Garki, Abuja. This ministry was created by President Muhammadu Buhari when he served as the military president of the country. When he established this ministry in 1988, he made a renowned journalist, Adamu Adamu, the minister of the ministry.

The following are namely the parastatals under the Ministry of Education: National Universities Commission (NUC), Abuja; National Board for Technical Education (NBTE), Kaduna; National Commission for Colleges of Education (NCCE), Abuja; Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC), Abuja; National Commission for Nomadic Education, (NCNE), Abuja; National Commission for Adult Education Mass Literacy and Non-Formal Education (NMEC), Abuja; Nigerian Educational Research Development Council (NERDC), Sheda, FCT; Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB), Bwari, Abuja; West African Examination Council (WAEC), Lagos; National Examination Council (NECO), Minna, State; National Business and Technical Examination Board (NABTEB); National Institute for Educational Planning & Administration (NIEPA), Ondo; National Teachers Institute (NTI), Kaduna; Nigerian Mathematical Centre (NMC), Sheda, FCT; Nigerian French Language Village (NFLV) Badagry, Lagos; Nigerian Arabic Language Village (NALV) Ngala, Borno; National Institute for Nigerian Languages (NINLAN) Aba, Abia; Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TET FUND), Abuja; National Library of (NLN), Abuja; Teachers-Registration Council of (TRCN), Abuja; Computer Professionals Registration Council of (CPN), Lagos; Federal Scholarship Board, Abuja.

3. Aiding Of Agricultural Development

When Nigeria gained independence in 1960, the country was capable of producing enough food to feed its population. Over the course of about 60 years, the country experienced a population explosion. Nigeria now has a population of over 190 million people, making it the seventh most populous country in the world. Furthermore, this country is expected to become the fifth most populous country in the world, by 2020. Present-Day Nigeria is unable to feed its population. Nigeria relies on food from other countries to feed its ever-growing population. One of the functions of the civil service is to aid agricultural development in the country. The ministry concerned with this is the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development. The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development is presently headed by Audu Innocent Ogbeh. Between 2011 and 2015, during President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan’s tenure, Akinwumi Adesina was the minister of Agriculture and Rural Development. Other people who have held this post include Adamu Bello, Abba Sayyadi Ruma, and Sheikh Ahmed Abdullah. National Root Crops Research Institute is a parastatal under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.

That’s all on the major importance and functions of the Civil Service in Nigeria.

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