The Ministry of Finance has validated GH¢45.4 billion in contractor and supplier claims following a rigorous nationwide audit designed to clean up the government’s payables ledger and safeguard public funds.
The verified amount forms part of a larger GH¢68.7 billion in claims that were submitted by contractors and suppliers seeking payment from the government. The exercise was undertaken to ensure that only legitimate claims are settled while eliminating inflated, duplicated, or fraudulent entries from the state’s books.
Presenting a statement in Parliament on Tuesday, March 10, 2026, on behalf of Finance Minister Dr Cassiel Ato Forson, Deputy Minister Thomas Nyarko Ampem explained that the audit reviewed a wide range of documents, including unpaid Interim Payment Certificates (IPCs), invoices, and Bank Transfer Advices (BTAs). The verification process was carried out by the Ghana Audit Service with support from international auditing firms EY and PwC.
According to the findings, out of the GH¢68.7 billion submitted for verification, GH¢45.4 billion has been confirmed as legitimate and cleared for payment. However, the audit also uncovered GH¢8.1 billion worth of claims that were rejected due to significant irregularities such as overstatements, duplication of invoices, and falsified documentation. In addition, GH¢13.3 billion in claims remains pending as investigators continue to seek third-party confirmations and supporting contractual documents before making a final determination.
The exercise further exposed what officials described as alarming cases of systemic abuse within certain government programmes. One of the most striking examples was found within the One District, One Factory (1D1F) initiative, where a request for GH¢89.4 million in interest subsidies was discovered to be entirely fictitious after five commercial banks confirmed that no such payments were owed to them.
Investigators also uncovered a GH¢10.5 million payment tied to a supposed “Buffer Account” that did not correspond with any verified bank account records. In another case, auditors identified GH¢4.4 billion in recycled invoices that had already been paid between 2020 and 2024 but were resubmitted as outstanding claims.
Further discrepancies were detected in the education sector, where GH¢160 million in alleged teacher trainee arrears was found to be non-existent after confirmation from the Ghana Tertiary Education Commission.
