The Nigerian Air Force (NAF), has approved the establishment of the Directorate of Veteran Affairs to improve the welfare packages of retired personnel and their families.
The new Directorate which domiciled under the Administration Branch is charged with responsibility of interfacing with veterans affairs department in sister Services towards harnessing necessary benefits for NAF retirees under existing Federal Government programmes for veterans, among other responsibilities.
Chief of Air Staff (CAS), Air Marshal Oladayo Amao, made this known at the opening of a 2-day Conference for NAF Administrative and Medical personnel in Abuja which has as its theme, “Efficient Human Resource Management: Panacea for Bolstering Morale and Improving Personnel Welfare”.
In his at the occasion, Air Marshal Amao while noting that the NAF considers the state of physical and mental well-being of its personnel, as an important factor in the sustenance of morale and force multiplier in ensuring operational effectiveness, said the Conference is aimed at refocusing operational capabilities and bolstering personnel morale.
Amao noted that the strength of any armed Service was not determined by the strength of its arsenal, but by the professionalism of its workforce which is largely bolstered through robust human resource management.
He said that in the last two months, the NAF had launched the Telemedicine portal to ensure access to prompt medical attention, whilst promoting confidence in NAF medical services for enhanced morale and productivity of personnel.
Amao while expressing the hope that the outcome of such innovations would stimulate NAF human resource management efforts to be at par with global organizational standards and best practices, challenged participants to critically assess areas where the NAF was lacking as regards personnel welfare and administration and come up with workable solutions to mitigate effects on the Service’s operational capabilities.
He said “As a highly technical Service that deals with sophisticated aircraft, equipment and military hardware, maintaining a highly skilled, efficient, healthy and motivated workforce should be the hallmark of our daily activities. To this end, we will continue to epitomize best human resource management practices to promote our operational effectiveness.
Earlier, in his address the Air Secretary, Air Vice Marshal Mahmud Madi had said the timing for the conference was apt, considering the strategic importance of the human resource in achieving organizational goals and objectives.
He said the NAF has invested hugely in human capacity development and personnel welfare in recent years which has translated to tangible gains in NAF operational conducts.
The Chief of Medical Services, Air Commodore Olabode Babalola commended the CAS for ensuring that the NAF Medical Services measure up to the global best practice, adding that the approval of the Medical Conference goes a long to prove the determination of the NAF Chief to improve healthcare delivery in the service
