By Edward Acquah
Accra, Nov. 01, GNA – The Ministry of Environment, Science, Technology, and Innovation (MESTI) has charged its finance officers in the various agencies to file their financial statements on time to avoid sanctions.
It said it was concerned about the delays in filing of statements by some of its agencies, which affected the timely consolidation of the Ministry’s financial statements in accordance with the Public Financial Management Act, 2016 (Act 921).
Alhaji Siraj Tanko, the Director of Finance at MESTI, issued the directive at the opening of a workshop on financial management and financial reporting and fixed assets management for heads of accounts of agencies under the Ministry in Accra on Tuesday.
The meeting also discussed challenges faced by the officers and measures to improve the level of compliance with the submission of financial reports.
The MESTI has 33 spending units, with the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), one of the five agencies under the Ministry, accounting for 18.
Alhaji Tanko said it was mandatory for all finance officers to submit their financial returns by the 15th of every quarter for consolidation.
He reminded the officers that failure to do so could attract punitive measures of up to six years’ imprisonment.
He charged the officers to compile the reports on weekly basis to make it easier for them to reduce the workload and meet the reporting deadlines.
“Sometimes, people are reluctant thinking that they have enough time to prepare the reports, but 15 days after the end of the month is not enough. So, it is important for them to start the process early,” Alhaji Tanko said.
He added: “We should sit up and comply with the requirements of the PFM Act. It will be good for the Institution, Ministry, and the Controller and Accountant General so that we can all see the true position of the government.”
GNA