On February 28, 2017 a letter from Ghana’s Presidency announced the appointment of Mr. Kwasi Agyemang Busia as the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Authority (DVLA), this announcement set the tone for the transformation and digitalization of the authority.
The story of the DVLA has since the assumption in to office of Mr. Busia changed positively, as the Ghanaian public’s perception of the authority changed – from excellent customer service, improved service delivery to technology inclined service the DVLA has become an ideal public sector organization.
With over 22 years of hands-on experience in business and technology development, strategic planning, project and people management. Mr. Busia leverages his unique multi-disciplinary skills to deliver collaborative teams and information supply chain that enables performance driven organizations in the public, academic and private sectors.
An alumnus of the Prempeh College in the Ashanti Region, Mr. Busia obtained his BA degree in English at Ghana’s premier University; the University of Ghana. In 1989 he obtained his MBA in Information Systems and Economics at the University of Dallas in Dallas Tx.
He worked for IBM corporation whiles pursuing his master’s degree as a programmer analyst and in 1991 as a senior systems analyst for Meridian Oil and Gas exploration company in Fort Worth Tx until 1996 when he joined the Centers of Disease Control (CDC).
At the CDC, Mr. Busia served as program manager, as an informatics director for the Centers of Disease Control tackling enterprise-wide projects such as the 3.5 billion dollars vaccine ordering, forecasting, distribution and tracking application which covers all States and territories of the United States of America. From 1999-2002, Mr Busia was the lead person responsible for multimillion dollar business development of multiple web applications for 8 divisions within CDC and deployed over 22 applications within a year spanning disease prevention, disease monitoring and disease outbreak containment.
Mr. Busia’s leadership and Technological initiatives were primarily responsible for the containment of the severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) and Monkey pox outbreaks in 2002. For 17 years, he pioneered the development of a variety of performance driven and strategic applications coordinating initiatives for the CDC including projects that collaborated with the World Health Organization, the International Organization for Migration for data collection, data analysis and information dissemination.
Before his appointment to lead the DVLA, Mr. Busia was the Information Services Manager of Tullow Ghana Ltd.
Mr Busia, in 2017, together with his management team developed a two-year strategic business plan for 2018-2019, to change the fortunes and the public perception of the DVLA dubbed the “Double, Double Business plan”.
He Engineered by leveraging technology, coordination and streamlining of the process and the ability to provide prestige, premium and regular services for driver license delivery within 30 minutes, 2 weeks and a month respectively and managed the logistics for the deployment of digitized vehicle registration system, this innovation has all vehicles registered in the country since 1995 successfully digitized.
He also implemented a new roadworthy certificate regimen to replace a hitherto severely compromised one and coordinated the opening of a customer service call centre.
In ensuring staff efficiency, he established an HR department, which assesses and delineates employee job roles, job descriptions and ensures performance matrices with KPIs derived from Vison and related objectives and introduced a Customer Service Week (CSW) Celebration and Nine Lessons and Carol service to motivate and celebrate staff.
Mr. Kwasi Agyemang Busia’s lead administration reenergized the compliance and enforcement unit which collaborates with MTTD of the Ghana Police Service to check road users for compliance and ensure the leveraging of data, its use for innovation, forging collaboration with other government entities, such as the Ministry of Health, EPA and NPA.
The introduction and the establishment of Private Vehicle Test Stations (PVTS), Trade Plate (Defective Vehicle) Innovation and Improvement, introduction of DVLA data services, translation of Computer Based Test (CBT) into Ghanaian languages is one of the key game changers in his administration.
Recently the authority launched the Tertiary Students Drive (TertDrive) which seeks to grant opportunity to all students who are willing to acquire a driver’s license to do so in the comfort and convenience of their campuses and commissioned two new offices at Kumawu and Effiduase in the Ashanti Region bringing to 32, the number of DVLA offices across the country.
The DVLA has commenced processes to develop a standardised manual and curriculum for the training of heavy goods vehicle (HGV) drivers in the country and the establishment of Motorcycle Rider Training Schools.
Awards
Under his leadership the organization has received over 32 recognition awards- He has been adjudged the Public Sector ICT man for three consecutive years 2018 at the Ghana Information Technology & Telecom Award (GITTA) 2019 (CEO of the year – CEO Network and 2020 (GITTA awards).
Mr Busia was recently inducted into the Hall of Fame for the transport sector by the Chief Executive Network Ghana Limited at its 5th CEO Summit in Accra.
In July this year, the organization was adjudged the best State Own Enterprise in customer experience at the 10th Marketing World Awards, other awards received by the Authority in include Excellence in Public Procurement (Silver), Innovative use of Technology in Public Procurement and Supply (Bronze) at the Ghana Procurement & Supply Chain Awards.
They also won ICT Service delivery and information award; Gold, Best Government Website; Silver, Best Government use of social media (citizen engagement); Most People Focused CEO of the Year at the African Public Sector Conference and Awards in 2018 while Emerging HR Innovation of the Year Award (Public Sector), Most Innovative public sector institution as well as best in Policy & Administrative Reforms at the Ghana Integrity Initiatives Awards (GII). The Authority also emerged second as the most innovative public sector at the Inspirational Public Sector Leadership Awards ceremony among others.
The distinguished chief executive has been reappointed by President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo to serve as the head of the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Authority for his second term in office.
Many have received the news of his reappointment with joy and are enthusiastic about greater performance at the authority.
By: Alexander Bombande
