The Auditor-General has reported financial irregularities amounting to GH¢5.266 billion across Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) for the 2025 financial year, with tax-related infractions accounting for more than 90 per cent of the total amount.
The findings are contained in the Report of the Auditor-General on the Public Accounts of Ghana: Ministries, Departments and Other Agencies for the Year Ended 31 December 2025, which was submitted to Parliament in accordance with Article 187(2) of the 1992 Constitution and Section 20 of the Audit Service Act, 2000 (Act 584).
According to the report, the total value of financial irregularities rose to GH¢5,266,315,079, compared with GH¢2.055 billion recorded in 2024, representing an increase of more than 156 per cent. The Auditor-General attributed the sharp rise largely to significant growth in tax-related irregularities.
Tax irregularities amounted to GH¢4.802 billion, representing 91.2 per cent of all infractions identified during the audit. Cash irregularities followed with GH¢410.7 million, while indebtedness, loans and advances totalled GH¢29.25 million.
Payroll irregularities stood at GH¢19.92 million, contract irregularities at GH¢3.35 million, stores and procurement irregularities at GH¢1.13 million, and rent-related irregularities at GH¢44,940.
The report said the irregularities reflected both actual losses to the State and potential savings that could have been realised if public officials had complied with the country’s public financial management framework.
“The irregularities represent either losses that had been incurred by the State through the impropriety or lack of probity in the actions and decisions of public officers or, on the other hand, the savings that could have been made, if public officials and Institutions had duly observed the public financial management framework put in place to guide their conduct and also safeguard national assets and resources.”
The Auditor-General also indicated that the reported amounts remain recoverable and said further investigations would determine whether public officials should be surcharged or disallowed under existing laws.
“I will investigate these matters further and, where appropriate, disallow any items of expenditure that were contrary to law, and surcharge responsible officials accordingly.”
Among the most significant findings, the report cited over GH¢3.016 billion in tax debt owed by 10 state institutions and more than GH¢701.7 million in unpaid Value Added Tax (VAT) and related levies owed by 7,970 VAT-registered taxpayers.
Cash irregularities included GH¢285.76 million in transactions that lacked payment vouchers and supporting documentation for audit verification.
Other findings included payroll payments of GH¢7.49 million made to four deceased pensioners, advances for vehicles that had not been delivered to public health facilities, and contract payments for goods that remained undelivered by the end of the audit period.
