2 months ago
37 ARTICLE AD
A GH¢16.47 million Regional Audit Service Office complex has been inaugurated for the Volta region in Ho.
It is to improve the infrastructure deficit of the Audit Service to enable it deliver more effectively on its constitutional mandate.
The project, which was funded by the German government under the German Development Bank (Kfw), and executed by Matapo Limited,has 19 offices and the project was executed within a period of two years.
The Volta Regional Minister, Dr Archibald Latsa, who read a speech on behalf of the President, Addo Dankwa Akufo Addo, at an inaugural ceremony in Ho, explained that in 2016, cabinet approved a loan facility of EUR13.0 million from
the German Development Bank for the construction of 25 regional and district offices for the Audit Service.
The President said the loan agreement was executed on December 12, 2016, following Parliamentary approval on October 31 the same year, however, he mentioned that the procurement process was disrupted by bureaucratic practices, which delayed the project, causing an increase in the cost of the construction and therefore reduced the number of offices to be constructed from 25 to 19.
Nana AkufoAddo stated that the government of Germany during the 2020 Ghana and Germany inter governmental negotiations committed an additional EUR11.5 million to the project in order to enable the Audit Service to construct additional six regional and districts offices.
He further said this had enabled the Audit Service to commit funds from the government of Ghana budget to complete projects that were started by the Audit Service in 2012, and were abandoned at various stages across the country.
The President, therefore, commended the German government for the continuous support to the development of Ghana over the years.
The Portfolio Manager of Kfw, MsViktoria Kowarzik, expressed her satisfaction about the judicious use of funds by the Audit Service in the building of the office complex projects and renovation of others across the country.
She said with the provision of adequate infrastructure for the Audit Service, it would help promote transparency, accountability, and would enable the personnel to effectively carry out investigation into the usage of public funds in the country.
The Auditor General, Mr Johnson Akuamoah Asiedu, lauded the government’s commitment to ensuring that the infrastructure challenges confronting the Service were addressed, saying the completion and inauguration of the Volta Regional Office Complex brought to third such regional offices completed.
MrAsiedu indicated that the projects, when completed across the country, would address the situation where some Audit Service offices were housed in private properties and old post office buildings, which made visibility of such offices difficult, since the Service did not own the buildings.
FROM SAMUEL AGBEWODE, HO
