Deputy Minister of Finance, Thomas Ampem Nyarko, has announced that the government will provide detailed clarity on payments owed to road contractors in the upcoming mid-year budget review, as part of broader efforts to manage arrears and uphold fiscal discipline.
Speaking in an interview, Mr. Nyarko revealed that a comprehensive audit of outstanding arrears conducted by the Auditor-General in collaboration with top accounting firms has been completed, with some contractor claims disallowed.
“All these will be programmed in our budget… some of the amounts are being disallowed,” he said. “In the mid-year budget review, Dr. Forson will report on that, and we will indicate what the audited arrears are.”
Mr. Nyarko disclosed that GHS 13 billion has already been allocated for arrears clearance in the 2025 fiscal year, with additional allocations planned for 2026.
“We have made plans for Gh¢13 billion, which we are religiously pursuing this year. In next year’s budget, we will announce another amount”.
He emphasized the government’s commitment to avoiding future arrears build-up by enforcing strict budgetary controls.
“We have given commitment authorisation so that we don’t spend above what has been budgeted for the year.”
Mr. Nyarko also took aim at the former New Patriotic Party (NPP) administration, accusing it of poor fiscal management.
“If we go the way they [NPP] did, we will be clearing the arrears, and we will be building up more arrears. That is not how to manage an economy,” he argued.
