GSS Commences Training of Field Officers for first ever GIPSS

The Ghana Statistical Service (GSS) has commenced a four-day training exercise which runs from Tuesday 7th December to Friday 10th December for field officers that would undertake the 2021 Ghana Integrity of Public Services Survey (GIPSS) and with the Anti-Corruption and Transparency (ACT) week that was launched by the Commission for Human Right and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ) on Monday 6th December with the theme”Building a Culture of Intergrity for Generations”.

The survey which is the first in the country will collect baseline information on direct experiences of corruption events and on opinions and perceptions of citizens about recent trends, their patterns and policies on corruption as well as experiences of reporting corruption to public authorities.

It would also collect data on experiences of other crimes such as robberies, physical or sexual harassments, homicides and access to justice as background information on the respondents such as family structure; education, employment and monthly experience.

The survey scheduled to begin on December 12, 2021, is a collaborative exercise between the GSS, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crimes (UNODC) and the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ) while funding for the survey is being supported by the German government through UNODC is expected to interview 15,000 respondents countrywide.

The GIPSS will provide internationally comparable measures of corruption aimed at supporting the implementation of policies to achieve the Sustainable Development Goal 16.5(Substantially reduce corruption and Bribery in all their forms).

The data generated will also serve as a guide for evidence-based policymaking and planning to include dominant challenges in Ghana today, frequency and characterisation of bribery and corruption in both public and private services awareness and effectiveness of Anti-corruption agencies, crime, feelings of security and access to justice.

Issues to be discussed for the four days include , conduct, role and responsibilities of field officers, use of maps, community entry and guidelines, identification, roster and perception and opinions, logistics distribution, and experiences with public and private companies.

The Deputy Commissioner of CHRAJ, Mr. Richard Quayson said the survey would provide the needed answers on the importance of data collection on corruption and the need for the survey to establish the reality behind the perceptions of corruption in Ghana.

The government statistician, Professor Samuel Kobina Annim, speaking at the opening, said the survey was in line with international demands and its complementary to previous surveys conducted by the statistical service.

According to him the level of resources pumped into the exercise calls for tactfulness, discipline and the ability to demonstrate that knowledge in the subject matter for a successful survey.

Prof. Annim charged the participants to humble themselves in their approach and also ensure that they are responsive to the needs of the people adding that “this exercise is not about business as usual but as a stepping stone to a career that would ensure Ghana continually has data to transform the system by reducing corruption to the barest minimum while reflecting the different components of integrity and access to justice.

He cited evidence from previous surveys
such as the GLSS 7 – Module on Governance, Peace and Security which indicated about 3 in 10 (28.2%) of respondents had experienced in at least half of their engagement with public official the payment of unauthorised money for delivery of service ranging from 51.6% in the Central Region to 11.5% in the Volta Region.

He warned the participants against committing any errors because the benchmark was needed to maintain peace and security and unauthorised payments.

Professor Annim urged trainees to be ethical, sensitive, and skilful in the discharge of their duties and to let the 3Ps – Passion, psychology, and preparedness embody their work.

The Government Statistican ended by informing trainees about the checks and balances put in place to ensure that quality data is generated from the exercise.

In accordance with the Statistical Service Act, 2019 (Act 1003) that requires that all data provided by respondents be kept confidential, trainees took the oath of secrecy.

The conduct of the Ghana Integrity of Public Services Survey is in accordance with the
mandates of the Ghana Statistical Service (GSS) to provide comprehensive, reliable, quality, relevant, accurate and timely statistical information to guide national development as stipulated in Section 3 of the Statistical Service Act, 2019 (Act 1003).

Some dignitaries present at the ceremony are Mrs. Abena Osei-Akoto (The Director of Survey and Censuses Organization-GSS), Mr John Agyaho (Project Coordinator-GSS), members of the Project Implementation Team, Directors from GSS and CHRAJ.

By: Sheila Satori Mensa