Johnson Akuamoah Asiedu
Ghana’s public debt for the 2024 financial year stood at GH₵737.17 billion lower than the GH₵876.08 billion earlier reported in the government’s consolidated financial statements, according to the 2024 Auditor General’s report.
According to the report, the findings show an overstatement of GH₵138.91 billion as a result of discrepancies between records from the Ministry of Finance and the Whole of Government Accounts (WGA).
The variances highlighted by the Auditor General in the report include domestic external debt figures, as well as loans by COCOBOD
The report revealed that external debt was overstated by GH₵1.77 billion, domestic debt by GH₵132.98 billion, and COCOBOD’s domestic debt by GH₵4.15 billion, while COCOBOD external debt was understated by GH₵2.1 million.
“We noted from our review of public debt that the Whole of Government Accounts (WGA) that CAG reported GH₵876,081,091,891 as total public debt whiles our review of public debt records from the Ministry of Finance indicated total public debt of GH₵737,172,532,902 leading to an overstatement of GH₵138,908,558,917,” said the Auditor General Johnson Akuamoah Asiedu.
“Section 54 of the Public Financial Management Act, 2016 (Act 921), mandates that public debt be fully and accurately reported,” the report stated, noting the need for financial statements to present a true representation of the country’s fiscal position.
The report warned that the inflated figures could mislead the public and stakeholders regarding the country’s debt sustainability and also called for improved reconciliation practices between the Ministry of Finance and accounting entities to ensure accuracy and transparency in public financial reporting.
Some economists have raised concerns about data reliability within the country’s public finance system especially, as the country navigates a debt restructuring programme under the IMF’s Extended Credit Facility (ECF) arrangement.
By Ebenezer K. Amponsah