GHANA
NATIONAL SERVICE SCHEME ACT, 1980
(ACT 426)
ARRANGEMNET
OF SECTIONS
1. Establishment of the Ghana
National Service Scheme.
2. Application of Scheme.
3. Persons to be Directed to
Render Service in Certain Fields.
4. Duration of National Service.
5. Terms and Conditions of
Engagement.
6. Certificate of National
Service.
7. Persons Liable to National
Service not to be Employed
Contrary to the Provisions of this
Act.
8. Exemptions.
9. Board to be Notified of Persons
who have Completed Course of
Study.
PART II—THE NATIONAL SERVICE BOARD
10. The Board.
11. Qualifications and
Disqualifications of Members of
Board.
12. Tenure of Office and
Emoluments of Members of the
Board.
PART III—OBJECTS AND FUNCTIONS OF
BOARD
13. Objects and Functions of
Board.
14. Meetings of Board.
PART IV—MANAGEMENT AND STAFF OF
SCHEME
15. Director of Scheme.
16. Staff of Scheme.
17. Secretary of Scheme.
18. Internal Auditor.
19. Board Members not to Sponsor
Appointments.
PART V—FINANCIAL PROVISIONS
20. Funds of Scheme.
21. Estimates of Expenditure.
22. Financial Year.
23. Bank Accounts and Borrowing
Powers of Board.
24. Accounts and Audit.
PART VI—GENERAL PROVISIONS
25. Access to Information.
26. Powers of Board to Give
Directions.
27. Annual Report.
28. Offences.
29. Regulations.
30. Interpretation.
31. Repeal.
THE FOUR HUNDRED AND TWENTY-SIXTH
ACT OF THE PARLIAMENT OF THE
REPUBLIC OF GHANA
THE GHANA NATIONAL SERVICE SCHEME
ACT, 1980
AN ACT to establish a Ghana
National Service Scheme in
accordance with article 176 of the
Constitution and for other matters
connected therewith.
DATE OF ASSENT: 23rd September,
1980.
BE IT ENACTED by Parliament as
follows:—
PART I—ESTABLISHMENT OF GHANA
NATIONAL SERVICE SCHEME
Section 1—Establishment of the
Ghana National Service Scheme.
There is hereby established a
Ghana National Service Scheme in
this Act referred to as "the
Scheme".
Section 2—Application of Scheme.
(1) The Scheme shall apply to any
person who—
(a) is a citizen of Ghana;
(b) has attained the age of
eighteen years or more.
(2) The National Service Board
may, with the prior approval of
the President, by constitutional
instrument, make regulations under
section 29 of this Act to apply
the Scheme to any citizen of Ghana
who has attained the age specified
in subsection (1) of this section.
Section 3—Persons to be Directed
to Render Service in Certain
Fields.
(1) Subject to the other
provisions of this Act, the Board
may direct any person to whom the
Scheme applies to be engaged, full
time, in any of the following
fields:—
(a) Agriculture,
(b) Co-operatives,
(c) Education,
(d) Health,
(e) Local Government,
(f) Military,
(g) Rural Development, including
surveying, physical planning,
civil engineering and rural
industries,
(h) Youth programmes, and
(i)
any other field that the Board may
prescribe from time to time, and
any such person shall comply with
the directions of the Board.
(2) Subject to the provisions of
section 4 of this Act and subject
to subsection (3) of this section
any person to whom the Scheme
applies shall be engaged in one
field for the period of his
national service.
(3) Where the Board is satisfied
that the circumstances so require
the Board may vary from time to
time the field of operation in
respect of any person to whom the
Scheme applies.
Section 4—Duration of National
Service.
(1) The period of national service
in respect of any person under
this Act shall be two years, so
however that this period shall
include a minimum of six months
military training.
(2) A person specified in
subsection (1) of section 2 of
this Act shall do such part of his
national service as may be
specified by the Board before
entering into a higher educational
institution and shall do the
remaining part of his service
immediately upon completion of his
course of study in such
institution.
(3) Where a person studies or
continues his education outside
Ghana he shall be liable to do his
national service on his return to
Ghana after such studies or
education.
(4) Where a person who has
successfully completed his
national service is later engaged
in the public service the period
of his national service shall
count towards any probationary
period to be served by him.
Section 5—Terms and Conditions of
Engagement.
Any person to whom the Scheme
applies shall be engaged under the
Scheme upon such terms and
conditions including remuneration,
as may be specified in his letter
of engagement.
Section 6—Certificate of National
Service.
Any person who satisfactorily
completes his period of national
service shall be awarded a
Certificate of National Service by
the Board.
Section 7—Persons Liable to
National Service not to be
Employed Contrary to the
Provisions of this Act.
(1) A person who has not
commenced and completed his period
of national service shall not—
(a) obtain employment outside the
Scheme; or
(b) be employed by any other
person outside the Scheme; or
(c) be engaged in any employment
outside the Scheme, whether
self-employed or otherwise,
without the prior permission, in
writing, of the Board.
(2) It shall be the duty of every
employer to ascertain from every
employee, upon his appointment,
whether or not he is liable to
national service and if he is, the
employer shall notify the fact to
the Board forthwith.
Section 8—Exemptions.
The Board may exempt any person to
whom the Scheme applies from
compliance with the provisions of
this Act, or postpone the date on
which any person shall be first
engaged under the Scheme.
Section 9—Board to be Notified of
Persons who have Completed Course
of Study.
Every institution where any
persons who are receiving formal
training and who have attained the
age of eighteen years or more
shall forward to the Board as soon
as practicable but in any case not
later than the end of its academic
year, a list of all such persons.
PART II—THE NATIONAL SERVICE BOARD
Section 10—The Board.
(1) The governing body of the
Ghana National Service Scheme
shall be the National Service
Board (in this Act referred to as
"the Board")
(2) The Board shall consist of—
(a) a Chairman
(b) the Director referred to in
section 15 of this Act, and
(c) six other members, all of
whom shall be appointed by the
President, acting in accordance
with the advice of the Council of
State.
Section 11—Qualifications and
Disqualifications of Members of
Board.
(1) No person shall be qualified
to be a member of the Board who—
(a) is not a citizen of Ghana;
(b) has been adjudged or
otherwise declared
(i)
a bankrupt under any law in force
in Ghana and has not been
discharged;
(ii) to be of unsound mind; or
(c) is detained as a criminal
lunatic under any law for the time
being in force in Ghana; or
(d) has been convicted—
(i)
for high crime under the
Constitution or for an offence
involving the security of the
State, fraud, dishonesty or moral
turpitude, or
(ii) for any other offence on
indictment; and has not been
granted a free pardon; or
(e) has been found by the report
of a commission or a committee of
inquiry to be incompetent to hold
public office or in respect of
whom a commission or committee of
inquiry has found that while being
a public officer he acquired
assets unlawfully or defrauded the
State or misused or abused his
office, or wilfully acted in a
manner prejudicial to the
interests of the State, and such
findings have not been set aside
on appeal or judicial review; or
(f) has had his property
confiscated as the result of the
findings of a commission or
committee of inquiry, and such
findings have not been set aside
on appeal or judicial review; or
(g) is under sentence of death or
sentence of imprisonment imposed
on him by any court; or
(h) is otherwise disqualified by
any law for the time being in
force.
(2) Without prejudice to the
provisions of subsection (1) of
this section, any member of the
Board shall cease to be a member
if in the case of a person
possessed of professional
qualifications, he is disqualified
or suspended, otherwise than at
his own request, from practising
his profession in Ghana or in any
other country by order of any
competent authority made in
respect of him personally.
Section 12—Tenure of Office and
Emoluments of Members of the
Board.
(1) All members of the Board
shall hold office for a period of
four years;
(2) A member of the Board may
resign his office by notice in
writing addressed to the President
and, without prejudice to the
provisions of section 11 of this
Act, any such member may, for good
cause shown, and in the public
interest, be removed by the
President acting in accordance
with the advice of the Council of
State.
(3) All members of the Board
ceasing to hold office shall,
subject to section 11 of this Act
be eligible for re-appointment.
(4) Where any member of the Board
is absent from Ghana or
incapacitated by illness or any
other cause from performing the
functions of his office the
President may, acting in
accordance with the advice of the
Council of State appoint another
person to act in his office until
the member is able to resume the
performance of his functions.
(5) The Chairman or in his absence
the Director shall notify the
President in writing of all
vacancies occurring in the
membership of the Board and of any
circumstances giving rise to an
appointment under subsection (4)
of this section.
(6) There shall be paid to members
of the Board in respect of their
membership such subsistence,
travelling and other allowances as
the Minister responsible for
Finance may approve in relation to
them.
PART III—OBJECTS AND FUNCTIONS OF
BOARD
Section 13—Objects and Functions
of Board.
The Board shall, subject to the
provisions of this Act, have
general control and management of
the Scheme on matters of policy.
Section 14—Meetings of Board.
(1) The Board shall ordinarily
meet for the despatch of business
at such times and at such places
as the Board may determine but
shall meet at least once in every
month.
(2) A special meeting of the Board
shall be called upon a written
request signed by the Chairman or
by a majority of the members of
the Board addressed to the
Secretary of the Board and the
Chairman shall call such a special
meeting within ten days after
receipt of such a request.
(3) At every meeting of the Board
at which he is present, the
Chairman shall preside and in his
absence a member of the Board
elected by the members present
from among themselves shall
preside.
(4) Questions proposed at a
meeting of the Board shall be
determined by a simple majority of
members present and voting and in
the event of an equality of votes
the person presiding shall have a
second or casting vote.
(5) The quorum at any meeting of
the Board shall be five.
(6) The Board may at any time
co-opt any person or persons to
act as an adviser or advisers at
any of its meetings, so however
that no person so co-opted shall
be entitled to vote at any such
meetings on any matter for
decision by the Board.
(7) The validity of any
proceedings of the Board shall not
be affected by any vacancy among
its members or by any defect in
the appointment of any of them.
(8) Any such co-opted member or
members shall be entitled to such
allowances as the Minister
responsible for Finance may
approve.
PART IV—MANAGEMENT AND STAFF OF
SCHEME
Section 15—Director of Scheme.
(1) The Scheme shall have a
Director who shall be appointed in
accordance with article 157 of the
Constitution and shall hold office
upon such terms and conditions as
may be specified in his instrument
of appointment.
(2) Where the office of the
Director becomes vacant the Board
shall notify the President of the
occurrence of the vacancy.
(3) Where the Director is
incapacitated from the performance
of his functions under this Act
the Board may subject to
subsection (4) of section 12 of
this Act authorise any employee of
the Scheme to perform those
functions for the duration of the
incapacity.
(4) Subject to the provisions of
this Act, the Director shall,
subject to the general control of
the Board on matters of policy, be
charged with the direction and
day-to-day business of the Scheme
and its administration and the
organisation and control of all
the employees of the Scheme.
(5) Subject to the provisions of
this section the Director may
delegate to any employee of the
Scheme any of his functions under
this Act and may impose with
respect to the exercise of such
delegated functions such
conditions as he may think fit:
Provided that nothing in this
subsection shall be construed so
as to absolve the Director from
ultimate responsibility for any
act done by any person in
pursuance of any such delegation.
Section 16—Staff of Scheme.
(1) The Board may from time to
time engage such employees as may
be necessary for the proper and
efficient conduct of the business
and functions of the Scheme.
(2) The Board may also engage the
services of such consultants and
advisers as the Board may upon the
recommendations of the Director
determine.
(3) The staff of the Scheme shall
be appointed in accordance with
the provisions of article 157 of
the Constitution.
(4) Subject to the provisions of
the Constitution the employees,
consultants and advisers of the
Scheme shall be appointed upon
such terms and conditions as the
Board may, on the recommendations
of the Director determine.
(5) Public officers may be
transferred or seconded to the
Scheme or may otherwise give
assistance thereto.
Section 17—Secretary of Scheme.
(1) The Scheme shall have an
officer to be designated as "the
Secretary".
(2) The Secretary shall act as
Secretary to the Board at its
meetings and shall subject to the
directions of the Board, arrange
the business for and cause to be
recorded and kept minutes of all
meetings of the Board.
(3) The Secretary shall also
perform such functions as the
Board may by writing or as the
Director may by writing delegate
to him and shall be assisted in
his functions by such of the
employees of the Scheme as the
Board on the recommendation of the
Director may direct.
Section 18—Internal Auditor.
(1) The Scheme shall have an
Internal Auditor.
(2) Subject to the provisions of
this Act, the Internal Auditor
shall be responsible to the
Director for the performance of
his functions.
(3) As part of his functions
under this Act the Internal
Auditor shall, at intervals of
three months, prepare a report on
the internal audit work carried
out by him during the period of
three months immediately preceding
the preparation of the report, and
submit the report to the Director,
and the Board shall meet as soon
as possible to discuss the
Internal Auditor's report.
(4) Without prejudice to the
general effect of subsection (3)
of this section, the Internal
Auditor shall make in each report
such observations as appear to him
necessary as to the conduct of the
financial affairs of the Scheme
during the period to which the
report relates.
(5) The Internal Auditor shall
send a copy of each report
prepared by him under this section
to the President and also to each
of the following:—
the Minister responsible for
Finance and Economic Planning,
the Auditor-General, and Chairman
and each member of the Board.
Section 19—Board Members not to
Sponsor Appointments.
No member of the Board shall
personally sponsor or recommend
any application for the employment
of any person under this Act and
any Board member who infringes the
provisions of this section shall
be liable to be removed from the
Board.
PART V—FINANCIAL PROVISIONS
Section 20—Funds of Scheme.
The funds of the Scheme shall
include such sums as may be
appropriated to it by the
Government or any other source.
Section 21—Estimates of
Expenditure.
(1) The Board shall submit to the
Minister responsible for Finance
at such times and in such form as
the Minister may direct, detailed
estimates of the income and
expenditure of the Scheme for the
next following financial year.
(2) Subject to the provisions of
the Constitution, the expenditure
of the Scheme shall be in
accordance with the said estimates
as approved by the Minister
responsible for Finance.
Section 22—Financial Year.
(1) The financial year of the
Scheme shall be the same as the
financial year of the Government.
(2) Notwithstanding subsection (1)
of this section the period
commencing with the coming into
force of this Act and ending on
the 30th day of June, 1981 shall
be deemed to be the first
financial year of the Scheme.
Section 23—Bank Accounts and
Borrowing Powers of Board.
(1) The Scheme may have bank
accounts in such banks as the
Minister responsible for Finance
may approve.
(2) The Minister responsible for
Finance may, on behalf of the
Government, guarantee the
performance of any obligation or
undertaking of the Board under
this Act.
Section 24—Accounts and Audit.
(1) The Scheme shall keep proper
accounts and proper records in
relation thereto and the accounts
books and records of the Scheme
shall be in such form as the
Auditor-General may approve.
(2) The books and accounts of the
Scheme shall, within three months
after the end of each financial
year, be audited by the
Auditor-General or by an auditor
authorised by him in accordance
with article 151 of the
Constitution.
(3) The Scheme shall pay in
respect of such audit such fees
(if any) as the Auditor-General
may agree.
PART VI—GENERAL PROVISIONS
Section 25—Access to Information.
(1) For the purposes of the
attainment of its objects and the
performance of its functions under
this Act the Board shall have
access to all information and
records of any institution or
other place to which this Act
applies which are reasonably
necessary for the said purposes.
(2) The Board may by writing
request from any person any
information reasonably necessary
for the full implementation of
this Act.
Section 26—Powers of Board to Give
Directions.
The Board may by writing give
directions to any person for the
purpose of ensuring the full
implementation of this Act and any
such person shall be bound to
comply with such directions.
Section 27—Annual Report.
(1) The Board shall, as soon as
possible after the expiration of
each financial year but within six
months after the termination of
that year, submit to the Minister
an annual report dealing generally
with the activities and operations
of the Scheme within that year
which shall, without prejudice to
the generality of the foregoing
include—
(a) a copy of the audited accounts
of the Scheme together with the
Auditor-General's report thereon;
(b) each report submitted by the
Internal Auditor under section 18
of this Act in relation to that
financial year; and
(c) such other information as the
Minister may request.
(2) A copy of the annual report
shall be forwarded by the Board
to—
(a) Parliament;
(b) the Minister;
(c) the Minister responsible for
Finance and Economic Planning;
(d) the Minister responsible for
Labour, Youth and Social Welfare;
(e) the Minister responsible for
Education, Culture and Sports;
(f) the Minister responsible for
Agriculture;
(g) Minister responsible for
Health;
(h) the Minister responsible for
Defence; and
(i)
the Minister responsible for Local
Government, Rural Development and
Co-operatives.
Section 28—Offences.
(1) Any person who—
(a) contravenes any of the
provision of section 7 of this
Act; or
(b) refuses to notify the Board of
the completion by any person of
any course of study as required
under section 9 of this Act or
fails without reasonable cause
(proof of which shall be on him)
to give such notice; or
(c) provides any information under
this Act which he knows to be
false or has no reason to believe
to be true; or
(d) refuses or fails without
reasonable cause (proof of which
shall be on him) to comply with
any direction given by the Board
under subsection (1) of section 1
or section 26 of this Act,
shall be guilty of an offence and
shall, on summary conviction, be
liable to a fine not exceeding
five thousand cedis or to a term
of imprisonment not exceeding five
years or to both; and in the case
of a continuing offence, to an
additional fine not exceeding one
hundred cedis in respect of each
day on which the offence
continues;
(2) Where an offence is committed
under this Act by a body of
persons, then—
(a) in the case of a body
corporate (other than a
partnership) every director or
officer of the body shall be
deemed also to be guilty of the
offence; and
(b) in the case of a partnership,
every partner or officer of the
body,
shall be deemed also to be guilty
of that offence:
Provided that no person shall be
deemed to be guilty of an offence
by virtue of this section, if he
proves that the offence was
committed without his knowledge or
connivance and that he exercised
all due diligence to prevent the
commission of the offence, having
regard to all the circumstances.
Section 29—Regulations.
The Board shall, with the prior
approval of the President, by
constitutional instrument, make
Regulations for—
(a) prescribing anything that may
be prescribed under section 3 of
this Act;
(b) the areas of activity for the
purpose of service under the
Scheme;
(c) the conditions under which a
person may be engaged or exempted
under the Scheme; and
(d) the performance of its
functions under the Constitution
or any other law for the effective
and efficient administration of
the Scheme.
Section 30—Interpretation.
In this Act "the Minister" means
the President or any Minister
designated for the purposes of
this Act.
Section 31—Repeal.
The National Service Scheme
Decree, 1973 (NRCD. 208) is hereby
repealed:
Provided that until the members of
the Board are duly appointed and
the regulations are made under
section 29 of this Act for the
implementation of this Act the
Scheme established under the said
Decree shall continue in operation
as if the said Decree shall
continue in operation as if the
said Decree had not been repealed.
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