By Enock Akonnor (Managing Editor) enockakonnor2013@gmail.com
The Minister for Foreign Affairs of Ghana, Hon. Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, has announced the introduction of a new long-service and best performing staff award scheme for locally recruited employees of Ghana’s diplomatic missions abroad.
In a statement shared on his official Facebook page, the Minister highlighted the touching story of Mr. Oriel Chinthaka Ariyaratna Paiyagala Linyanage, a locally recruited driver at Ghana’s Embassy in Paris, who fulfilled a lifelong dream of visiting Ghana for the first time after 41 years of dedicated service.
Mr. Oriel, originally from Sri Lanka, was recruited on September 8, 1984, and has served as a representational driver at the Paris mission for more than four decades.
During a carols service, he was surprised with an all-expenses-paid trip to Ghana as part of his award package, which also includes visits to key tourist attractions, gifts, and a cash prize.
The Minister noted that Mr. Oriel’s late father had also worked for many years as a driver at Ghana’s embassy in France but never had the opportunity to visit Ghana, making the gesture especially meaningful.
Hon. Ablakwa also celebrated other long-serving locally recruited Ghanaian staff who received similar awards.
They include Mr. Evans Aryeequaye Attoh, who has served as a driver at Ghana’s Embassy in Rome for 36 years; Mrs. Caroline Nkrumah-Appiah, a stenographer at Ghana’s New York mission with 35 years of service; and Mr. Philip Twum Nkansah, an Accounts Assistant at the Rome embassy, also with 35 years of service.
According to the Minister, the newly established award scheme aims to motivate staff, deepen inclusivity, and promote productivity among locally recruited employees at Ghana’s missions abroad.
The initiative will be held annually. He also clarified that home-based Foreign Service staff already benefit from a separate and distinct award scheme.
Congratulating the award recipients, Hon. Ablakwa emphasized Ghana’s appreciation for their decades of dedication and service, concluding his message with the national pledge, “For God and Country.”
Enock Akonnor is an experienced Ghanaian journalist, based in Kumasi and currently serves as the CEO and Managing Editor of www.leakyghana.com.
With a wealth of expertise built over many years in the media industry, he has earned a solid reputation as one of Ghana’s most sought-after journalists.
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