ASSESSMENTS BEGIN FOR THE TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO DIAMOND STANDARD Twenty Nine Agencies Seek Diamond Certification

MEDIA RELEASE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

17 March, 2014

 

ASSESSMENTS BEGIN FOR THE TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO DIAMOND STANDARD Twenty Nine Agencies Seek Diamond Certification

 

For the first time in the history of the public service, the Government of Trinidad and Tobago, through the Ministry of Public Administration, is making a concerted effort to ensure Ministries and Agencies establish and maintain the highest standards in delivering services to citizens.

Since the launch of the Trinidad and Tobago Diamond Standard Programme in June 2013, twenty three (23) agencies and twenty five (25) services have been actively working to improve their service delivery. In addition to constantly monitoring their performance, these agencies have taken the additional step of seeking feedback from their clients and working on resolving any issues that may have arisen.

The Programme was launched by the Honourable Carolyn Seepersad-Bachan, Minister of Public Administration, and is intended to provide national certification to Ministries or Agencies which offer services that exemplify excellence. The assessment phase of the programme begins today, Monday 17th March 2014 and will continue until 30th April 2014.

Commenting on the initiative, Minister Seepersad-Bachan said, “I am proud of the work undertaken by the agencies and ministries, including the Ministry of Public Administration, to support this Programme. It is an important step in addressing the age old complaints about poor service delivery by government. It is also a useful roadmap for the delivery of Diamond Standard service to our present and future clients.”

Agencies and services that apply for the Diamond Standard Certification will be assessed against eight (8) criteria. These are Service Environment; Customer Involvement; Communications; Promoting a Customer Service Culture; Responsiveness; Innovation and Creativity; Technology and Partnerships.

Ten (10) professional Assessors will conduct the assessments. These Assessors successfully completed rigorous training to conduct the formal assessments for certification of services as Diamond Standard.

The Diamond Standard Award will be presented to successful agencies and services at an awards ceremony to be held in June.

Note for Editors:

The Trinidad and Tobago Diamond Standard is a new public service quality certification initiative that seeks to significantly improve the quality and delivery of public services by government agencies; make government agencies more responsive to the needs and concerns of citizens and other client groups; and improve the ease of doing business with government agencies.

Assessments will be conducted on an annual basis and certification will be valid for three (3) years. Upon expiry of the certification, agencies will be required to re-apply for certification of their service. Certification can be withdrawn at any time, should an Agency fail to maintain the required standards of service delivery.

Some of the agencies participating in the programme are the Family Court, Judiciary of Trinidad and Tobago; Belmont Police Station, Trinidad and Tobago Police Service; Immigration Division, Ministry of National Security; Medical Records Department, South West Regional Health Authority (SWRHA); Conditional Cash Transfer Programme, Ministry of the People and Social Development; Outpatients’ Clinic Scarborough General Hospital (Signal Hill), Tobago Regional Health Authority (TRHA); Accident and Emergency Department and Women’s Clinic St. James Hospital, North West Regional Authority (NWRHA); TT BizLink and the Trade Licenses Unit, Ministry of Trade, Industry and Investment; Inland Revenue Division, Ministry of Finance; Neighbourhood Upgrade Programme and House Improvement Grants, Ministry of Housing, Land and Marine Affairs; National Archives, Ministry of National Diversity and Social Integration; Scholarships and Advanced Training Division, Ministry of Public Administration; Water Taxi, NIDCO, Public Service Transportation Corporation (PTSC); Trinidad and Tobago Electricity Commission (T&TEC); Tobago Emergency Management Agency (TEMA) and Tobago Information and Technology Centre, Tobago House of Assembly; Accident and Emergency, Eastern Regional Health Authority (ERHA); Naparima College; Scavenging Services for East Port of Spain and Open Spaces in the Port of Spain City Corporation.

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For further information please contact:

Rae Ann Harper-Walters, Head Corporate Communications Division at 688-2068 or 625-8059