Great leadership outlives the office, leaving behind systems, partnerships, and institutions that continue to deliver.
In fact, by that measure, the tenure of former Director-General of the National Service Authority (NSA), Osei Assibey Antwi, deserves recognition for laying a foundation whose benefits continue to be felt by National Service Personnel (NSP) and young people across the country.
Mr. Assibey Antwi’s tenure was characterised by an attempt to reposition national service from a mandatory one-year assignment into a broader platform for skills development, employment, entrepreneurship, and national transformation. His philosophy of “Deployment for Employment” sought to ensure that national service would not simply be an obligation to be completed but an opportunity through which young graduates could acquire practical experience and improve their prospects after service.
Partnerships
One of the significant features of his administration was the deliberate pursuit of partnerships with development organisations and private-sector institutions.
The collaboration with CAMFED Ghana, for instance, opened opportunities around education, STEM development, gender empowerment, and skills enhancement. Under the partnership, female graduates were positioned to serve as Learner Guides in schools while contributing to initiatives aimed at improving educational outcomes, particularly in underserved communities.
The partnership with the World Food Programme (WFP) similarly sought to connect national service to agriculture, food security, and youth development. The collaboration formed part of efforts to deploy young graduates into agricultural opportunities and expose them to practical skills that could translate into livelihoods and entrepreneurship.
These were not partnerships for their own sake. They represented an important shift in thinking: that the enormous human resource represented by National Service Personnel could be deliberately connected to national development programmes and international development expertise.
The administration also pursued collaborations across education, agriculture, technology, and youth development, including engagements involving organisations such as Agri-Impact Consult and other development partners. These initiatives helped broaden the possibilities available to NSP beyond the traditional understanding of national service
Foundation
Perhaps the most important legacy of Mr. Assibey Antwi’s tenure is the institutional foundation upon which subsequent administrations can build.
The transition from the National Service Scheme into the National Service Authority, supported by the National Service Authority Act, 2024 (Act 1119), expanded the institution’s mandate and created greater room for national service to contribute to employment, skills development, and national development. During the handover, Mr. Assibey himself urged the Authority to build on the foundation that had been laid.
The introduction of digital interventions such as the Metric App, biometric registration and verification, as well as initiatives designed to connect personnel to employment opportunities, demonstrated an effort to modernise the institution and make its operations more responsive to the needs of a changing generation of graduates.
It, is, therefore, important to appreciate that institutional progress is rarely the product of one administration alone. It is a relay in which one leader establishes systems, another strengthens them, and a subsequent generation takes them to greater heights
Today, as the National Service Authority continues to pursue youth development, employment, skills training, and strategic partnerships, some of the initiatives and relationships established during Mr. Assibey Antwi’s tenure remain relevant to that broader mission.
It is worth indicating that this is why his contribution deserves to be acknowledged without diminishing the achievements of those who have subsequently led the institution.
Leadership must be viewed through the prism of continuity. A good leader does not merely leave an office. However, he leaves behind systems, partnerships, ideas, and institutional capacity that others can improve upon.
Mr. Osei Assibey Antwi’s tenure provides such an example. Permit me to share that His efforts to sign partnerships with institutions such as CAMFED Ghana and the World Food Programme, alongside other development and private-sector partners, helped establish a culture in which national service could be viewed as a platform for youth development rather than merely a statutory requirement.
It is crucial to draw your attention to the fact that as the Authority continues to evolve, the appropriate response is therefore not to rewrite history but to recognise the contributions of successive leaders and ensure that good initiatives survive changes in administration. For the thousands of young Ghanaians who continue to pass through the national service system like I once did, that continuity matters.
The ultimate tribute to a leader is not applause for what he did yesterday. It is the evidence that what he built continues to create opportunities today.
And in that regard, Osei Assibey Antwi deserves acknowledgement for helping to set a tone of continuity, institutional development, and youth empowerment upon which the National Service Authority can continue to build.
The writer is a development and public affairs commentator and a former National Service Personnel, Ho.
