ISD INTENSIFIES PUBLIC EDUCATION IN NORTHERN REGION (PAGE 20)

THE Northern Regional Director of the Information Services Department (ISD), Mr Akamboe Ayierbasia, has said the department has intensified its activities of disseminating information on government policies and programmes.
He noted that in the past, the ISD could not perform its roles and functions effectively due to some operational bottlenecks, especially due to lack of logistics and personnel.
Mr Ayierbasia stated this at a two-day training workshop in Tamale for the staff of the ISD in the three northern regions.
The 44 participants, comprising mechanics, instrument workshop staff and mobile cinema operators, were trained in the handling of vehicles and technical equipment to prolong the lifespan of the vehicles given to the department.
The ISD and PHC Motors Limited, distributors of TATA, BMC trucks, Chrysler, Jeep and Dodge vehicles, organised the workshop.
Mr Ayierbasia further observed that “until recently, we were operational in only eight out of the 18 districts in the region but the situation is now different, as we are currently operating efficiently in all the districts”.
According to him, the use of information service vans distinguished his outfit from other media houses, hence the need to formulate effective strategies to handle the vans and other equipment very carefully.
“Frequent breakdowns as a result of improper handling of vehicles and equipment will only drain the nation's resources,” he emphasised.
Mr Ayierbasia, therefore, urged the participants to put into practice what they had learnt, stressing that “we do not want you to use the vehicles beyond official work hours or for your personal gains”.
Messrs Kwasi Aninagyei-Bonsu and Lawrence Lemaire, the Sales Officer, Government and Public Sector, and the Deputy Finance Manager of PHC respectively, said as part of their outfit's sales services requirements, the company was to provide training to staff of the ISD on the handling of their duty vehicles and equipment.
According to them, recently, the government purchased a total of 146 cinema vans from the PHC for the ISD through the Ministry of Information and National Orientation.