The Chief Executive Officer of the Food and Drugs Authority (FDA), Prof. Kwabena Frimpong-Manso Opuni, has expressed concerns about the inadequacies in the Authority’s staff remuneration
According to him, FDA employees are among the lowest-paid public workers in Ghana.
Speaking at the FDA’s 2024 Annual Stakeholder Meeting on Wednesday, August 20, Prof. Opuni revealed that over 67 highly trained staff have resigned in the past five years, citing poor conditions of service.
“FDA staff are among the worst-paid under the Single Spine Salary Structure. Just last year, 48 professionals left for better-paying opportunities in better-resourced organisations,” he said.
He urged the Fair Wages and Salaries Commission and the Ministry of Finance to expedite approval of the FDA’s revised conditions of service, warning that continued attrition could undermine the Authority’s core mandate of protecting public health.
Despite facing staffing challenges, Prof. Opuni noted that only 18 out of numerous recruitment requests had been approved by the Ministry of Finance, with the remaining staff hires funded through internally generated revenue (IGF).
Held under the theme: “Improving Productivity and Efficiency Through Digitalisation and Staff Commitment,” the stakeholder meeting convened key players from the Ministries of Finance and Health, as well as representatives from the private sector and civil society.
Providing updates on regulatory efforts, Afua Amoako-Mensah, Head of Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation at the FDA, said the Authority is stepping up enforcement under its Street Food Vending Permit Scheme.
“In the past year, we trained 3,510 food vendors and issued 1,094 permits. However, many vendors failed to follow through by obtaining mandatory health certificates, despite repeated follow-ups,” she stated.
She also noted that the FDA is working closely with border security agencies to stop non-compliant products from entering the Ghanaian market.
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