No government contract shall be approved without prior commencement authorisation from the Ministry of Finance - Ato Forson Minister of Finance

 At a recent meeting with Chief Directors and senior officials of various Ministries, Departments, and Agencies, I delivered a firm directive that takes effect from April 3, 2025: No government contract shall be approved without prior commencement authorisation from the Ministry of Finance.

This is not business as usual. This is a decisive step to enforce fiscal discipline, ensure accountability, and end the culture of financial recklessness in public administration. 

It is in full alignment with the recently amended Public Financial Management Act, 2025.

I made it unequivocally clear: You cannot award contracts without the express approval of the Ministry of Finance. 

Every contract must now receive commencement authorisation. 

Let me repeat: No commencement certificate, no procurement.

This is not merely a bureaucratic process—it is a legal requirement. 

Any breach of this directive will attract serious consequences.

The Ministry of Finance will no longer carry the weight of fiscal indiscipline alone. 

If you are a principal spending officer and you violate this directive, you will be held personally accountable.

I urge all public officials to act with integrity and a deep sense of national duty. 

We are among the privileged few—we must not continue to subject our people to hardship through negligence or abuse of public resources.

Restoring trust in public service begins with transparency, responsibility, and discipline in implementing the national budget. 

That journey starts now.