By Francis Kobena Tandoh
The Public Interest and Accountability Committee (PIAC) is demanding the government come out to provide project details of the proposed Accra-Kumasi expressway under President John Dramani Mahama’s ‘Big Push’ policy.
The call comes on the heels of the allocation of an amount of US$434.55 million of oil money under the Annual Budget Funding Amount (ABFA) to fund the project.
PIAC says it observed a transfer of US$434.55 million in 2025 from the ABFA to a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) established by the Ghana Infrastructure and Investment Fund (GIIF) for infrastructure development under the government’s Big Push’ policy.
However, GIIF reported that the funds are being held in a suspense account at the Bank of Ghana (BoG), pending the completion of feasibility studies for the Accra–Kumasi Expressway project.
According to the government, feasibility studies are currently ongoing on the project; hence, no amount of money allocated from the ABFA was spent in 2025.
PIAC says despite allocating such an amount of money for the Accra-Kumasi expressway, details about the project have not been made available; hence, it urges the government as a matter of urgency to provide that for effective monitoring of oil-funded projects as stipulated under the Petroleum Revenue Management Act (PRMA) 2011, Act 815 as amended.
The civil society monitoring argued that the state has realized some US$17.9 million so far by investing an amount of US$30 million for the construction of Terminal 3 at the Accra International Airport (AIA).
Speaking at a workshop for journalists over the weekend at Oyibi, near the Ghanaian capital, Accra, Samuel Bekoe, a member of the PIAC, said the decision to restrict the ABFA use to infrastructure development aligns with PIAC’s long-standing recommendation and wants information on the project.
“PIAC urges the government to provide detailed information on the Accra-Kumasi expressway in terms of published project scope, contractor, or cost details,” said Bekoe.
The group also wants the government to provide the legal basis in the PRMA for the transfer of ABFA intended for the ‘Big Push’ policy to GIIF.
According to the 2025 Annual Report of the PIAC, the ABFA disbursed for infrastructure development to support the ‘Big Push’ policy of the government for 2025 was US$431.42 million, constituting 99.57 percent of the actual ABFA and 75.28 percent of the budgeted ABFA allocation for infrastructure development for 2025.
The Ministry of Finance reported that reconciled unutilized ABFA as at the end of 2024 was US$3.13 million; hence, the total ABFA available for the ‘Big Push’ policy as at 2025 stood at US$434.55 million.
Some economic analysts argue that it would be prudent for the government to spend the US$434.55 million to complete the existing Accra-Kumasi highway expansion project, which is reported to be over 75 percent complete, rather than channeling the money into a new project under the ‘Big Push’ policy.
According to them, completing the existing corridor would potentially generate additional funds for national development compared to the new Accra-Kumasi expressway, which would be highly impossible for the current administration to start and complete before the president, John Dramani Mahama, leaves office at midnight on January 6, 2029.
Meanwhile, Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson, the country’s Finance Minister has assured the project would be completed in three years.
The PIAC has been established under the PRMA 2011, Act 815, as amended, to monitor and evaluate compliance with the Act by government and relevant institutions in the management and use of petroleum revenues and investment and provide space and a platform for public debate on whether spending prospects and management and use of revenues conform to development priorities as provided under section 21(3) of the PRMA 2011, Act 815, as amended.
It is also to provide independent assessment on the management and use of petroleum revenues to assist parliament and the executive in the oversight and the performance of related functions. Enditem
Source: Ghana Eye Report
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