The government has dismissed allegations that the Ministry of Roads and Highways has become a “sole-source factory”, revealing that only 4.58 per cent of road contracts awarded under the current administration were procured through sole-sourcing.

Government Spokesperson and Minister for Government Communications, Felix Kwakye Ofosu, disclosed this at a press briefing on Monday, June 15, saying a comprehensive 72-page investigative report commissioned by President John Mahama found no evidence to support claims of widespread abuse of sole-source procurement in the award of road contracts.

According to him, the investigation was triggered after the Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA), acting on behalf of The Fourth Estate, formally submitted a report to the Presidency alleging irregularities in the procurement processes under the Ministry of Roads and Highways, particularly within the government’s flagship 'Big Push' infrastructure programme.

Mr Kwakye Ofosu said President Mahama, committed to transparency and accountability, immediately referred the matter to the Senior Presidential Advisor on Governmental Affairs, Dr Valerie Sawyer, for an independent assessment.

Presidential Probe

He explained that the Presidency received the MFWA report on April 1, 2026, and forwarded it to the Roads and Highways Ministry a week later for a response.

The ministry subsequently submitted its response on April 21, while the final report was presented to the President on May 22.

Mr Kwakye Ofosu announced that the full report would be made public by the close of business on Sunday to enable Ghanaians to scrutinise its findings.

Key Findings

Presenting highlights of the report, Mr Kwakye Ofosu said investigators examined all contracts awarded by the Roads and Highways Ministry and its implementing agencies since the beginning of the current administration.

The review established that a total of 1,441 road projects were awarded during the period under review.

Of that figure, the Ghana Highways Authority awarded 405 contracts, the Department of Feeder Roads awarded 896 contracts, while 23 projects were inherited from the previous administration and re-awarded for various reasons.

The report also identified 63 consolidated projects and 54 main projects under the Big Push programme.

According to Mr Kwakye Ofosu, 1,301 of the 1,441 projects were awarded through open and competitive tendering processes.

“Out of a total of 1,441 projects, 1,301 were awarded through open or competitive tendering. These were publicly advertised and verified,” he said.

The remaining 140 contracts were awarded under the Big Push initiative.

Sole-Sourcing Figures

Breaking down the figures further, he said 66 of the 140 Big Push projects were procured through sole-sourcing, while 51 were awarded through restrictive tendering.

Another 23 projects were inherited from the previous government after having already been awarded through sole-source arrangements.

The report consequently found that only 66 out of the total 1,441 contracts awarded by the ministry during 2025 and 2026 were sole-sourced.

“Only 4.58 per cent of the total 1,441 road contracts awarded by the Ministry of Roads and Highways in 2025 and 2026 were awarded through the single-sourcing process,” Mr Kwakye Ofosu stated.

He added that even within the Big Push initiative itself, sole-sourced contracts accounted for less than half of the projects.

“Under the Big Push initiative, which is only one component of the total work being done by the ministry, less than half — exactly 47.14 per cent — were awarded through the single-sourcing process,” he said.

Procurement Approval

The Government Spokesperson explained that all projects procured through sole-sourcing or restrictive tendering received prior approval from the Public Procurement Authority (PPA) Board.

According to the report, the Ghana Highways Authority secured approval for 72 Big Push projects, of which 51 were sole-sourced and 21 awarded through restrictive tendering.

The Department of Urban Roads obtained approval for 16 projects, comprising 11 sole-sourced contracts and five awarded through restrictive tendering.

Similarly, the Department of Feeder Roads secured approval for 29 projects, with four sole-sourced and 25 awarded through restrictive tendering.

Mr Kwakye Ofosu stressed that all procurement processes were conducted within the framework of existing procurement laws and regulations.

‘Sole-Source Factory’ Claim Rejected

Based on the findings, the government says descriptions of the Roads Ministry as a “sole-source factory” are unsupported by evidence.

“The evidence above clearly shows that single-sourcing was not the primary mechanism for general Ministry of Roads and Highways contracts,” Mr Kwakye Ofosu said.

“Therefore, any claim that the ministry had become a sole-source factory cannot be sustained on the basis of verifiable evidence. If only 4.58 per cent of road projects were awarded through sole-sourcing, it cannot be said that this is a ministry that predominantly does sole-sourcing,” he added.

He reiterated the government’s commitment to openness and accountability, saying publication of the report would allow the public to independently assess the facts and conclusions reached by investigators.