President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has introduced a government telecommunication platform, Smart Workplace™ for use by all public sector workers in the wake of COVID-19 pandemic.
The Smart Workplace™ solution provides secured access to all applications required to work effectively.
This includes secured business-class e-mail services, access to Microsoft Office applications, document management, Instant Messaging (IM), audio and video conferencing, calendar management and file storage amongst others. Connectivity can be anywhere, anytime and on any device (PC, laptop, tablet and smartphone).
Public sector workers will, therefore, be encouraged to have meetings and collaborations through audio and video conferencing.
The fixed-to-mobile convergence will also allow Toll-free numbers to be rerouted/transferred to mobile phones outside the office (useful for Call Centers) operations for smooth operations of government services.
This is an effort to ensure government continuity and provide a safe working environment for public servants during the Covid-19 pandemic.
In his second address to the nation on measures to curb the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic, the President directed the Ministry of Communications to implement a digital solution to ensure uninterrupted government business.
The National Information Technology Agency has put together a comprehensive solution to enable all public sector workers (ministries, departments and agencies) to stay ay home and work remotely, observing all the safety protocols of social distancing while working remotely from home.
“Also, it will also ensure reliable and effective connectivity via sponsored data to the Smart Workplace™ portal. People can work remotely to curb the spread of the virus and also ensure productivity even in self-quarantine mode if required,” a statement from the Communications Ministry added.