The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has urged the government to appoint the boards of state-owned enterprises (SOEs) strictly on merit as part of efforts to strengthen corporate governance and reduce growing fiscal risks.
In its latest country report on Ghana, the Fund stressed that stronger governance and oversight of SOEs are critical because many of the enterprises continue to record losses while their rising liabilities place increasing pressure on the government’s finances.
The IMF also called for the timely submission of audited financial statements by SOEs to improve transparency, accountability and effective monitoring of their financial performance.
According to the report, the government should undertake a comprehensive review of its SOE portfolio to determine which entities should remain under state ownership and focus oversight on those of strategic national importance.
“A strategic review of the SOE portfolio is necessary to reassess the rationale for state ownership and concentrate oversight on strategically important entities,” the report stated.
The Fund further highlighted weaknesses in the country’s tax administration, noting that low tax compliance continues to undermine domestic revenue mobilisation.
It observed that although the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) has introduced digital tools to improve tax collection, significant compliance gaps remain due to structural weaknesses, limited use of risk-based compliance measures and operational inefficiencies.
The report identified delays in the partially digitalised Value Added Tax (VAT) refund process as one of the factors affecting the efficiency of revenue administration.
The IMF also called for further reforms to strengthen the public financial management (PFM) systems in order to consolidate the gains made under the Extended Credit Facility (ECF) programme.
It recommended expanding the coverage of the Ghana Integrated Financial Management Information System (GIFMIS) to all central government entities, ensuring full utilisation of the integrated GIFMIS and Ghana Electronic Procurement System (GHANEPS) platforms, enforcing competitive procurement practices instead of relying on single-source contracts, and achieving full visibility over government accounts to operationalise an effective Treasury Single Account (TSA).
On public investment, the IMF said stronger project planning and appraisal systems are needed as the government increases capital expenditure.
It noted that the 2025 Public Investment Management Assessment (PIMA) revealed persistent weaknesses in project appraisal and selection, and urged the government to ensure that all capital projects included in the national budget comply with the appraisal and selection procedures required under existing laws.
A Business Desk Report