The Finance Ministry of Ghana has implemented efforts to reestablish confidence in public finances, guarantee the legitimacy of the budgeting process, and establish a strong basis for expansion, according to Cassiel Ato Forson, PhD.
According to the Finance Minister, the following measures have been implemented:
• We are amending the Procurement Act to ensure that no central government procurement takes place without prior authorisation from the Minister for Finance. This is to bring discipline and transparency to public spending.
• We are also introducing amendments to the Public Financial Management Act. This will include a debt rule to reduce our debt-to-GDP ratio to 45 percent by 2035 and a requirement to maintain a primary surplus of at least 1.5 percent of GDP annually. We are also legislating the establishment of an Independent Fiscal Council to oversee adherence to these fiscal rules.
• We have operationalised a Compliance Desk at the Ministry of Finance. This will closely monitor how MDAs are complying with their fiscal commitments under the PFM Act.
• Soon, we will begin publishing a Public Financial Management Commitment Control Compliance League Table to rank MDAs based on their level of compliance with financial controls.
He clarifies that these actions are not being taken only to fulfill IMF targets, demonstrating the urgency with which the government wants to restart the Ghanaian economy.
Source: newsthemegh.com