Education Minister swears in new Governing Council of CIMG, calls for marketing-led public sector reform

The Minister for Education and MP for Tamale South, Haruna Iddrisu, inaugurated the new Governing Council of the Chartered Institute of Marketing, Ghana (CIMG) yesterday. He called for a shift in public sector service delivery using strategic marketing principles.

The ceremony took place at the Ministry of Education. It marked a new chapter for CIMG as it enhances its regulatory role under the CIMG Act, 2020 (Act 1021). In his keynote address, the Minister urged the council to expand marketing's influence into public governance.

“Marketing is not just about selling products,” Hon. Iddrisu said. “It’s about understanding human needs and delivering value.” He emphasized that in the public sector, this means listening to citizens and improving services. The goal is to measure citizen satisfaction alongside infrastructure outputs.

To achieve this, the Minister proposed three initiatives:
1. A national satisfaction survey across Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs).
2. A customer-centric training program for public servants with CIMG's help.
3. Institutionalizing Citizen Accountability Forums as performance metrics for public institutions.

Mr. Iddrisu praised former president Dr. Daniel Kasser Tee for his leadership in repositioning CIMG after the enactment of the CIMG Act, 2020 (Act 1021).

CIMG National President and Council Chair Mr. Michael Abbiw welcomed these proposals. He affirmed that CIMG is ready to collaborate with government agencies to build a service culture based on trust and responsiveness.

“Our Professional Marketing Qualifications position us well to support this agenda,” Mr. Abbiw stated. “We already lead private sector customer satisfaction surveys; extending this model to the public sector is necessary.”

He outlined an eight-point strategic vision focused on expanding membership, professional development, and strengthening research through initiatives like the Ghana Customer Satisfaction Index (GH-CSI) and Ghana Regional Brand Index (GH-RBI).

The Council pledged to engage more with MDAs, educational institutions, and key state actors. Their aim is to elevate marketing’s role in national development and improve citizen experiences across all public services.

This inauguration highlights CIMG’s evolving role as a thought leader in marketing. The newly inaugurated Governing Council consists of eleven distinguished members who will guide the Institute's strategic vision in coming years.