The Controller and Accountant-General’s Department (CAGD) has dismissed claims circulating on social media that the government has already spent almost GH¢11 billion on the Accra-Kumasi Expressway project, describing the assertion as a misunderstanding of Government accounting procedures.

In a statement, the Department explained that while funds earmarked for the flagship expressway project were transferred from the Consolidated Fund to Accra-Kumasi Expressway Limited, the transfer does not mean the money has been spent on construction.

According to the CAGD, the government established Accra-Kumasi Expressway Limited as a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV), through the Ghana Infrastructure Investment Fund (GIIF), to implement the project. The company is classified as a State-Owned Enterprise (SOE) for funding and accounting purposes.

Following Parliament’s approval of the concession, Government earmarked proceeds from the Annual Budget Funding Amount (ABFA) and mineral royalties in the 2025 Budget to finance the project. The approved funds were subsequently transferred into a dedicated Bank of Ghana account.

The Department stressed that the money remains in that account and has not been paid to any contractor or used for construction works.

It also clarified that the ongoing right-of-way clearing by the Ghana Armed Forces is a separate preparatory exercise and is not being financed from the funds set aside for the expressway.

Explaining the accounting treatment, the CAGD noted that Government operates at three levels: Central Government, Local Government and Government Business Entities, including State-Owned Enterprises.

Under Ghana’s public financial management framework, any transfer from the Consolidated Fund to a Government entity outside the Central Government accounting group is recorded as Grant Expenditure in the books of Central Government and as Grant Revenue in the books of the receiving entity.

The Department said this is a standard accounting practice and does not indicate that the receiving entity has spent the funds. It cited transfers to the District Assemblies Common Fund (DACF), GETFund and the National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA) as similar examples.

The CAGD therefore urged the public not to interpret the recording of the transfer as expenditure in Central Government’s accounts to mean that the funds have already been spent on constructing the Accra-Kumasi Expressway.

It reaffirmed that the accounting treatment applied to the project is fully consistent with Ghana’s Public Financial Management framework and established Government accounting standards.