The Auditor-General (A-G) Mr. Johnson Akuamuah Asiedu and the Eastern Regional Minister, Hon. Seth Acheampong laid a ceremonial block to signal the commencement of the construction of a two-storey regional office complex for the Audit Service in the Eastern Region on Tuesday 29 March 2022.  

The ceremony which took place at Effiduase near Koforidua in the Eastern Region signaled the simultaneous construction of two additional regional offices for the Central and Volta Regions as well as 16 district office accommodations at various places across the country. The beneficiary districts shall include Apam, Asamankese, Atebubu, Axim, and Bibiani The others are Bole, Dodowa, Effiduase, Enchie, Kintampo, and Kpando. The rest are Navrongo Offinso, Tepa, Twifo Praso, and Wenchi.

In his address, the A-G said the construction of the regional and district offices was a great relief to the Service since it enhances the independence of the Service and boost the confidence of the staff to work without any fear or favour. He disclosed that over 50 percent of the office spaces the Service is currently occupying are properties of institutions of state that are subject to audits by the Auditor-General or private facilities rented. This situation, he said, often create an unhealthy landlord-tenant relation which has the potential to undermine the statutory duty of the Service.

He commended the Governments of Ghana and the Federal Republic of Germany for financing the construction of the offices. He disclosed that a second phase, which would involve the construction of six regional offices for the newly created administrative regions and six additional district offices is under consideration by the parties, namely, Audit Service and Government of Ghana on one hand, and KfW and the German Government on the other.   

On his part, the KfW Country Director, Arndt Wierheim said the German government is supporting Ghana to develop the needed capacity for revenue generation and accounting as its contribution to the democratic development of the country. To this end they have rolled out various information technology tools to support the Ghana Revenue Authority to improve upon revenue collection and accounting while supporting the Audit Service to improve on its independence through infrastructural development. He said that through the German Development Bank, Germany offered a loan of about 13 million Euros to finance the first phase of the massive infrastructural development.

The Regional Minister, Hon. Seth Acheampong, who represented the Vice President, Mahamudu Bawumia, said the government is committed to retooling and providing infrastructure for state institutions to enable them to deliver on their mandate for the betterment of Ghana. He said, "indeed all sectors including health, education, and local government have had their fair share of infrastructure and resources … and the Audit Service being an important part of our governance structure could not be overlooked, hence the construction of regional and district offices blocks”.

He commended the Audit Service for promoting accountability and good governance. He advised the departments and other public institutions with oversight responsibilities to provide support to the Audit Service by playing their respective roles as expected to protect public resources for the good of the next generation. This is because “the Service alone cannot ensure accountability in the use of public funds and resources”, he said.

He urged the Audit Service to undertake regular capacity building programmes for management and staff as well as other key functionaries of the Departments and Assemblies to equip them with emerging trends in financial management so that they can discharge their functions effectively.

In her welcome address, the Assistant Auditor-General in charge of the Eastern Regional, Madam Count Akpeloo thanked the Board, Management and past Auditors-General of Audit Service for their roles that have brought the dream of constructing new offices to fruition. She urged government to continue providing infrastructural support to the Service to eliminate its dependence on auditees for office accommodation.

Present at the occasion were Nana Okowia Baabu Dwomoh II, Chief of Effiduase, Madam Comfort Asante, the New Juaben Municipal North Chief Executive, Deputy Auditors-General, District Auditors and other institutional and departmental heads in the region.