Praia 6^th July 2018. Dr. Jeremias Furtado, the Commissioner for Human Resources of the Commission of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), paid a working visit to the ECOWAS Centre for Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency (ECREEE) in Praia, Carbo Verde present the ECOWAS Pension scheme to staff of the Centre among others.

Apart from presenting the scheme, considered as one of the major programmes of the Commission, Commissioner Furtado’s visit was also to get acquainted with the concerns of the staff of the Centre.

Commissioner Furtado harped on the importance of the retirement scheme which he described as a critical issue taken care of as it takes into account the “working conditions and the dignity of all of those who dedicated their lives to serve the community”

He stressed the significance of working towards achievable collective objectives. He urged staff to be productive and “give the best of their knowledge and abilities in favor of ECOWAS”

According to the Commissioner, a lot of work has to be done and such “should be done with the people, by the people and for the people” who are working towards a common objective.

Receiving Commissioner Furtado, the Executive Director of ECREEE Mr. Mahama Kappiah expressed great satisfaction with the visit noting that the Centre is dear to the Commission and is central in the drive for achieving the vision of an ECOWAS of peoples rather than of States.

Dr. Kappiah made a presentation on the Centre, its mission, vision, strategic objectives including how it is achieving its objectives and making a positive impact on the lives of the ECOWAS citizens by the many projects it has been able to implement.

The director stressed the importance of strategic partnerships, while presenting the great contributions those partners such as the Government of Spain (AECID), the Austrian Development Agency (ADA), the Government of Cabo Verde, the United Nations for Industrial Development (UNIDO) and World Bank Group has been giving to the development of ECREEE.

The ECOWAS Commission’s Pension Desk officer, Mrs. Obiageli Ray-Oleru, also made a supportive presentation on the ECOWAS Pension Fund Scheme, elaborating on how the system works and how to get the best out of it.