Finance Minister Dr Cassiel Ato Forson has called on government officials and local authorities to strengthen accountability and ensure the effective management of public funds, warning that Ghana can no longer afford to waste its limited resources.
Speaking in Tamale during an engagement on the 2025 Auditor-General’s Report with Regional Ministers and Metropolitan, Municipal and District Chief Executives (MMDCEs), Dr Forson stressed the need for a renewed national commitment to recover lost funds, protect public revenue and account for every cedi spent.
“Ghana does not have the luxury of wasting public resources,” he said, emphasising that money lost through poor management and weak accountability could have been used to address pressing public needs.
He explained that every cedi collected by the state has the potential to improve the lives of citizens, whether through the provision of medicines, the rehabilitation of classrooms, market improvements or the maintenance of feeder roads.
“When a cedi is wasted, left uncollected, or poorly spent, somebody, somewhere, loses a service,” Dr Forson stated.
The Finance Minister maintained that recovering public funds must go beyond political promises and become an established practice across all levels of government.
He urged public officials to ensure that revenue due to the state is collected, funds already received are protected, approved expenditure is properly managed, and all spending is fully accounted for.
“Spend what is approved, account for what is spent, recover what is owed, and prevent it from happening again,” he said.
Dr Forson’s remarks highlight the government’s call for stronger financial discipline and accountability as Ghana seeks to ensure that public resources deliver tangible benefits to citizens.
