Foreign Affairs Ministry Unveils First Citizen’s Charter

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade has unveiled its first Citizen’s Charter.

It was unveiled on Thursday (October 10), during Customer Service Excellence Week, at the Ministry, Port Royal Street, in downtown Kingston.

Portfolio Minister, Senator the Hon. Kamina Johnson Smith, said launching of the document is a signal of the Ministry’s commitment to deliver consistent and excellent service to internal and external clients.

“It will inform our clients about their rights and, in fact, their privileges and responsibilities as citizens to receive high-quality services from here. And we know that we deal with difficult issues a lot of the times, and that sometimes make for difficult conversations, but this Charter is about how we manage that engagement on both sides,” she said.

Senator Johnson Smith said the Ministry commits to prioritising clients’ needs and expectations, providing concise information on procedures and addressing their concerns with timeliness to ensure satisfaction.

“We are confident that consistent demonstration of the principles and standards of this Charter will guarantee excellence in our service delivery,” the Minister noted.
Project Lead, Ministry of Finance and the Public Service, Melody Palmer, commended the Ministry for its service excellence strides, noting that the detailed Charter provides full and accurate information of its services and relevant contacts.

“The basic objective of any citizen’s charter is to empower the citizens in relation to the entity’s service delivery points. It is also meant to improve the accountability, transparency, and quality of public services,” she said.

She noted that the Ministry’s core values of excellence, professionalism and accountability will be tested and pointed out, that “service excellence is not a destination; it is an exciting journey that you have embarked on”.

Ms. Palmer added that the Charter expresses the entity’s commitment to maintain standards of quality, to improve service delivery, timeliness, greater levels of responsiveness to the public’s need for services, and greater satisfaction with the services provided.