Geoffrey Kabutey Ocansey, Executive Director of Revenue Mobilisation Africa, asserts that systemic procurement issues and their breaches are a primary cause for the significant delays, cost overruns, and substandard execution plaguing government development projects, consequently undermining value for money.
Mr. Ocansey’s comments came in response to the latest report by the National Development Planning Commission (NDPC), which confirmed these chronic challenges. The report reveals that most public sector development initiatives continue to suffer from these setbacks.
According to the 2024 Annual Progress Report, numerous capital projects across Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs) have exceeded their planned completion timelines, some by several years. While the report identifies low GDP growth, high inflation, and exchange rate volatility as key macroeconomic factors contributing to the delays and cost escalations, Mr. Ocansey pointed to underlying procurement failures.
The NDPC’s findings are stark: total contract costs for 17,993 capital projects surged from an initial GHS 434.8 billion to GHS 505.1 billion, representing a colossal GHS 70.3 billion overrun.
Commenting on these figures, Mr. Ocansey stated that the report’s findings are fundamentally accurate. He offered a clear illustration: “When you compare the cost of a health facility constructed by private entities during the COVID-19 era with the cost of those built by the government, the resulting conclusions are self-evident.”
He further expressed concern that practices such as the demand for bribes from contractors, the inflation of project costs, and deliberate project delays are all contributing factors, noting that the NDPC report clearly captures these issues.
Speaking on the Frontline program on Rainbow Radio 87.5FM, Mr. Ocansey emphasized the need for rigorous due diligence:
Capacity Assessment: Before contracts are awarded, the capacity of the executing bodies must be thoroughly examined to ensure they can complete the project within scope and on schedule.
Cost Verification: Project budgets must be scrutinised to prevent inflation. Professionals in the field, he argued, have a duty to publicly challenge suspicious project budgets.
Mr. Ocansey also proposed stringent punitive measures to address corruption and misappropriation of state funds:
“Such individuals should have their property confiscated to serve as a strong deterrent,” he advised. “Those in charge who allow others to fleece the state must also be punished severely. Critically, before we consider sending them to prison, we must prioritise the retrieval of all stolen funds.”
By: Rainbowradioonline.com/Ghana
