National Service - how you contributed to solving a challenge and to implementing change or reform?

How have you contributed to solving a challenge and to implementing change or reform? (be specific and include, what aspects of your leadership knowledge, skills and practice you consider to be well established and effect, which people or organization you worked with to solve the problems, and which creative methods were used.

In Ghana, it is mandatory for every individual who has completed his or her higher education at any level to once undergo a one year service to the nation as it is enshrined in our constitution. After the completion of my bachelor's degree in port and shipping administration in 2021, I was posted to Volta Lake Transport Company(VLTC) for my National Service. This company is an inland port that transports dry and liquid bulk cargoes from the south to the north of Ghana along the Lake Volta.

The company has five ferry stations which I was sent to one of them as a deck officer at a town called Kete-Krachi in the Oti region of Ghana. Unfortunately, that station was the least revenue generation and that had always been a matter of discussion by management, posing a lot of hurdles on the Station Officer and the Captain.

On my arrival, I realised the station does only trip in ordinary days and two trips on market days( Tuesday and Wednesday) within every week. Then I asked why? And I was told due to low traffic turn up on the ordinary days. I also spotted that on the second trips of every market days, luggages are not being charged. After working for one month, I made a proposal to both the Captain and the Station Officer that ''why can we not try the two trips on the ordinary days too and start charging the luggages on second trips of market days.'' The Captain agreed but the Station Officer did not; on the his argument that the two trips will increase cost by virtue of the fact that traffic turn up is low on ordinary days.

I persuaded him by telling him people always asked for that offer in town and that is why we should give it a try. With time, there was a consensus and I told them to make an announcement on the community radio and they did with our scheduled times given for daily trips. Now people from nearby towns who also utilise the ferry also head the news and started the two trips patronage. To our realisation, revenue began to increase and management was impressed and commended us.

Well, the grammar used is not very good but that is understandable since English is not your first language. The presentation of the information is clear. The backstory about national service being in your constitution helps the reader understand the importance of your posting at that particular port. It is something that the reviewer might take note of in relation to your narration. The only problem I can see is that you used such a simple explanation for the response that your actual conflict resolution and problem solving skills were not highlighted to the best of your abilities in the presentation. You could still expand on the discussion, explain more of the discord that had resulted in non support for the program at the start.