Accra, Oct. 28, GNA - The National Service Secretariat (NSS) has released the postings for the 2005/2006 service year and announced that the 27,625 prospective applicants are to do their service which begins on November 1.

The education sector had 70 per cent of the prospective personnel to meet the shortfall in the supply of teachers in the rural areas, while the Ministries, Departments, Agencies took 19 per cent, with the private sector taking 11 per cent of the postings.

Mr Alhassan Imoro, Head of Postings of the Secretariat, announcing these at a press briefing on Friday in Accra said 60 per cent of the prospective personnel are males.

Allowance for the personnel is still 696,000 cedis per month and transport allowance would be paid to and from service stations. Mr Imor said the Secretariat was liasing with the District Assemblies and personnel user agencies to secure accommodation for the personnel and urged communities to assist to accommodate them. He urged service personnel to take up their appointments early to facilitate early payment of their allowances.

Acting National Service Director, Mr Kofi Obiri Yeboah reminded the prospective personnel to take up their appointments as a call to national duty and added that the Secretariat would resist attempts to change postings which were done according to the needs of user agencies. The Reverend Simon Peter McKandamah, the Director of Human Resource, who deputised for Prof Kwesi Agyeman, Chairman of the National Service Board, said the interview for the northern sector for the Voluntary Service Programme was completed and that of Accra would soon be announced.

Rev McKandamah said the signing of the national service certificate had been delayed because the then Director was appointed as Minister, but following a decision by the Board, the Acting Director was in the process of signing the certificates. He gave the assurance that certificates for personnel, who had completed their service, would soon be ready.