New Audit Committees Inaugurated for Health Institutions in Greater Accra to Improve Financial Management
The issue of financial irregularities in Ghana’s public sector has been a source of concern for the government and citizens. For the most part, the health sector has been identified as one of the sectors where irregularities occur frequently. To address this issue, the Internal Audit Agency has inaugurated audit committees for all twenty-six health…
The issue of financial irregularities in Ghana’s public sector has been a source of concern for the government and citizens. For the most part, the health sector has been identified as one of the sectors where irregularities occur frequently.
To address this issue, the Internal Audit Agency has inaugurated audit committees for all twenty-six health institutions in Greater Accra. These committees will help managers of the various health centres to efficiently manage their funds and adhere to Act 921 of the Public Financial Management.
The mandate of the Audit Committees is to help management implement recommendations captured in audit reports and other monitoring reports, both internal and external. The committees will serve as control systems to check irregularities in the health centres and implement good financial management practices.
To lead in the performance of their duties, the twenty-six committees elected their chairpersons. The committees will serve for two years, after which the incoming committees will take over to continue the good work of checking financial irregularities.
During the inauguration, the Director General of the Internal Audit Agency warned the committee members to adhere to the Oath of Secrecy they took, as breaking it comes with legal consequences.
Dr. Mrs. Charity Sarpong, the Greater Accra Regional Director of the Ghana Health Service, urged the committee members to see management of the hospitals as partners and not competitors. She emphasized the need for the committees to work closely with the management of the hospitals to ensure efficient financial management.
In a nutshell, the inauguration of these audit committees is a significant step towards addressing financial irregularities in the health sector. It is hoped that these committees will be effective in their mandate and will contribute to improving the financial management practices in the health institutions in Greater Accra.
