The Controller and Accountant-General’s Department (CAGD) has dismissed claims circulating on social media that the government has already spent nearly GH₵11 billion on the Accra-Kumasi Expressway project.
According to the Department, the widely circulated claims are based on a fundamental misunderstanding of public accounting procedures, clarifying that no such expenditure has occurred since main construction works are yet to commence.
In a press release signed by the Head of Public Relations, Cephas N. Dosoo, the CAGD explained that the approved funds were merely transferred from the Consolidated Fund into a dedicated Bank of Ghana account to secure the project’s financing.
The statement emphasised that the money remains intact, waiting for the physical execution of the highway.
“The CAGD wishes to emphasise that these funds have not been paid to any contractor or spent on construction works,” the statement read. “They remain in the dedicated Bank of Ghana account pending project execution.”
To prevent delays and cost overruns, the government, through the Ghana Infrastructure Investment Fund (GIIF), established Accra-Kumasi Expressway Limited as a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) to oversee the flagship project.
Because this SPV is classified as a State-Owned Enterprise (SOE), standard public accounting rules require the transfer of funds to be recorded in a specific manner.
The Department explained that under national accounting standards, any transfer from the Consolidated Fund to an entity outside the immediate Central Government bracket is recorded as “Grant Expenditure” for the Central Government and “Grant Revenue” for the receiving entity.
“This is a standard accounting treatment and does not mean the receiving entity has spent the funds,” the CAGD clarified, adding that the same financial principle applies to allocations made to the District Assemblies Common Fund (DACF) and the National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA).
The statement further indicated that the current right-of-way clearing being carried out by the Ghana Armed Forces is a separate preparatory exercise and does not draw from the expressway’s main dedicated funding.
The CAGD assured the general public that the financial management of the Accra-Kumasi Expressway project remains fully transparent and strictly compliant with Ghana’s Public Financial Management framework.
By: Rainbowradioonline.com/Ghana