Inter-ministerial committee to probe GYEEDA
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The Minister for Youth and Sports, Mr Elvis Afriyie-Ankrah, who announced this, said the committee had been mandated to review the regulatory framework of GYEEDA.
It is also expected to carry out an in-depth investigation to determine possible irregularities of crime and related financial losses, as well as actions taken by management to recover possible embezzled money and other assets.
Mr Afriyie-Ankrah, speaking at a press briefing in Accra last Wednesday, said the committee would evaluate and investigate any potential conflict of interest and evaluate the administrative and accounting procedures and disbursements that had been followed.
He said the committee would review the capacity of persons entrusted with key responsibilities to perform, the current state of financial management, procurement, human resource and contracting procedures.
He said the government had been deeply committed to ensuring that GYEEDA contributed significantly to job creation for the youth, hence the formation of the committee to make recommendations and improve the long-term viability and sustainability of the programme.
Mr Afriyie-Ankrah indicated that the committee, which was inaugurated in April, would soon present its report for a decision to be taken on GYEEDA.
He observed that GYEEDA had been fraught with challenges that continued to impede the government’s efforts at implementing planned programmes and other social interventions for the youth.
He expressed concern over the challenges that were gaining prominence, especially with the recent media speculations about the possibility of financial irregularities.
He noted with concern that media discussions failed to tackle issues in their proper perspective, despite the government’s recognition of the problem and steps taken to resolve the matter such as the formation of the committee.
Mr Afriyie-Ankrah called on the media to be fair in their dealings with the committee to allow it to perform its duties until the final report was presented.
He announced that beneficiaries of the programme would be paid their allowances by the end of June, while awaiting the final report.
The minister expressed the hope that the restructuring of GYEEDA would enable it to introduce a comprehensive biometric means of payment to beneficiaries.
