By Yussif Ibrahim, GNA
Kumasi, Feb. 19, GNA – Selected civic actors in the middle zone of the country have undergone intensive training in Kumasi on how to effectively utilise the Auditor-General’s Report and digital reporting tools to strengthen public accountability at the district level.
The training formed part of a six-month project dubbed “An Anti-Corruption Initiative for Enhancing Governance and Accountability.”
The initiative is being implemented by a coalition led by the Africa Centre for Energy Policy (ACEP), in partnership with the Ghana Anti-Corruption Coalition (GACC) and Transparency International Ghana, with funding support from the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO).
The project seeks to enhance citizens’ interest and participation in the national auditing process while promoting stronger public demand for transparency and accountability in Ghana’s public financial management system.
Mr Solomon Yankah, Monitoring and Evaluation Officer at GACC, said the training focused on deepening participants’ understanding of the Auditor-General’s mandate and report, as well as the use of the Citizens’ Eye App—a platform that enables the public to report suspected cases of corruption or misappropriation to the Audit Service.
He noted that the exercise was not limited to the Ashanti Region, explaining that the country had been zoned into northern, middle and southern sectors.
“While we are engaging participants here in Kumasi, other teams are conducting similar trainings in the northern and western parts of the country,” he stated.
He said the target groups included civil society organisations expected to play a frontline role in demanding accountability from duty bearers, particularly at the district level.
Mr Yankah underscored the need for sustained institutional accountability, stressing that although Ghana had numerous anti-corruption laws and policies, enforcement remained a major challenge.
Addressing the participants, Madam Alberta Owoo of the Ghana Audit Service, reiterated the constitutional mandate of the Auditor-General to promote good governance and accountability in the management of public funds.
She expressed optimism that the training would equip participants with a clearer understanding of the Auditor-General’s functions and how the report could be used as an advocacy tool.
The coalition believes that empowering civic actors with knowledge of audit processes and reporting mechanisms would increase public scrutiny of public expenditure and contribute meaningfully to the reduction of corruption.
GNA
Edited by Kwabia Owusu-Mensah / Lydia Kukua Asamoah