Twenty-three public officers will be recognised for their exceptional performance when the Government of the Virgin Islands hosts its inaugural Public Service Excellence Award Ceremony.

The gala event will take place at the Eileene L. Parsons Auditorium on Thursday, July 23 at 7:00 p.m. Awardees will be recognised in the categories of Excellence in Leadership, Administrative Support, Organisational Development, Personal and Professional Development, Scientific/Engineering and Technical Achievements and Service to Clients.

Remarks will be delivered by His Excellency the Governor, Mr. John S. Duncan, OBE, Acting Premier, Dr. the Honourable Kedrick D. Pickering and Deputy Governor, Mrs. V. Inez Archibald, CBE.  Mr. Gerard Farara, Q.C., Senior Partner and Head of Litigation at FARARA KERINS will provide the keynote address.

The Public Service Excellence Award aims to improve employee morale and award exceptional performance across all levels of Government.

It features an open nomination process and includes the recognition of senior management such as permanent secretaries and heads of department, in addition to support staff and middle management for various awards.  Also important is the fact that each Ministerial Selection Committee selected their representative in the various awards categories.  The programme was launched on February 9 by His Excellency the Governor.

The Public Service Excellence Award is administered by the Department of Human Resources and replaces the Employee of the Quarter Programme.