The Ministry of Finance (MoF) has rejected claims that it withheld information on the utilisation of the Annual Budget Funding Amount (ABFA) from the Public Interest and Accountability Committee (PIAC).
Rather, the ministry explained that it had provided PIAC with data on petroleum revenue receipts and distribution, as well as information on the arrangements for utilising ABFA resources, including funds ring-fenced for the Accra–Kumasi Expressway.
A statement issued by MoF in Accra yesterday, said: “The exclusion of ABFA utilisation data from PIAC’s report should, therefore, not be presented as evidence that the ministry withheld information.”
Context
The clarification followed concerns raised by PIAC at the launch of its 2026 semi-annual report in Accra on October 21, this month over the omission of data on the utilisation of ABFA.
According to PIAC, the Ministry of Finance had failed to provide data on ABFA utilisation for inclusion in its statutory report for the third time.
The omission had, therefore, made it impossible to provide a breakdown of how petroleum revenues allocated to the national budget had been spent during the period under review.
The Chairman of PIAC, Richard Ellimah, explained that the ministry’s failure to submit the data in good time contravened the requirements of the Petroleum Revenue Management Act, 2011 (Act 815), as amended.
Funds ring-fenced
However, the ministry maintained that its officials had participated in PIAC’s virtual validation workshop and held in-person meetings with the committee to explain petroleum revenue receipts, distribution and the arrangements for ABFA utilisation.
On the Accra–Kumasi Expressway, the ministry cited paragraph 572 of the 2026 Mid-Year Fiscal Policy Review, which stated that all funds allocated to the project, including the total ABFA realised in 2026, had been ring-fenced.
It said the funds would be used for construction once the contract was awarded.
The ministry said the decision followed PIAC’s recommendation to stop spreading petroleum revenues thinly across numerous projects with limited economic impact.
It explained that concentrating the resources on the expressway was intended to deliver a major infrastructure investment with clear national benefits and value for money.
MMDAs share
The ministry further rejected suggestions that district assemblies had been deprived of their share of ABFA resources.
It said the five per cent share due to the District Assemblies Common Fund was being paid from the Consolidated Fund, an arrangement it had explained to PIAC.
“Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies have, therefore, not been shortchanged by the decision to ring-fence ABFA resources for the expressway,” the statement said.
The ministry reaffirmed its commitment to providing PIAC with the information required to discharge its mandate and to account publicly for petroleum revenues.
It added that relevant details would continue to be published in the Annual Report on Petroleum Funds, Petroleum Reconciliation Reports, Budget Statements and other fiscal reports.
