Auditor-General cites DACF administrator over GHc12.9 million in financial breaches

— The Auditor-General has uncovered financial breaches at the District Assemblies Common Fund (DACF) amounting to GH¢12.9 million, according to the 2025 audit report, with findings revealing irregular advance payments for stalled projects and a procurement violation involving a multi-million-cedi contract awarded without required regulatory approval.

The breaches, detailed in the Report of the Auditor-General on the Management and Utilisation of the District Assemblies Common Fund and Other Statutory Funds for the Year Ended 31 December 2025, cover two broad categories of infractions.

Millions paid out for projects that never took off

The audit found that the DACF Administrator released GH¢10.7 million in advance mobilisation funds across 13 district projects that subsequently stalled for periods ranging from 13 to 60 months. The disbursements were made in contravention of Section 7 of the Public Financial Management Act.

“We also noted that the contracts and advance mobilisation securities had expired,” the report states.

The Auditor-General condemned the payments, warning that they undermined value for money, as funds remained unutilised for extended periods without corresponding project execution.

“The non-commencement of works, coupled with expired contracts and advance mobilisation securities, exposes the funds to the risk of non-recovery and potential loss,” the report said. “It also delays delivery of the intended infrastructure and services to beneficiaries.”

Though the report did not indicate why the payments were made before execution of works, the Auditor-General recommended that the Common Fund Administrator assess the status of implementation and ensure recovery of funds where projects could not be completed.

Procurement threshold breached

In a separate finding, the Administrator awarded a contract valued at over GH¢2.2 million to Lampas Company Limited for the provision of digital data services to support evidence-based decision-making — covering software setup for capturing data on DACF-funded projects, training and briefing of staff for data collection, and field deployment costs.

Under the Public Procurement Act, approving authorities for Ministries, Departments and Agencies are limited to a threshold of just GH¢100,000. Above this limit, the law requires referral to the Central Tender Review Committee for approval.

“In contravention of the applicable procurement requirements, the contract was neither referred to nor reviewed and approved by the Central Tender Review Committee prior to award,” the report states.

By the time the audit was conducted, more than GH¢1.3 million had already been paid to the firm. The Auditor-General condemned the breach, stating that “non-compliance with procurement law undermines transparency, fairness, and value for money in the procurement of services”, and recommended that the Administrator be held liable for any losses or deficiencies that may occur.

A history of systemic irregularities

The latest findings come against a backdrop of persistent financial mismanagement at the DACF. Auditor-General reports indicate that irregularities associated with the management and utilisation of DACF resources between 2020 and 2024 exceeded GH¢452 million, with the figure rising sharply to GH¢205.9 million in 2024 alone.

A ten-year audit assessment found that Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assembly (MMDA) irregularities accumulated to GH¢242.84 million and were still rising, with the cumulative DACF figure for 2021-2025 now exceeding GH¢499 million.

A new administrator, ambitious reforms — and now, audit findings

The breaches come just over a year into the tenure of Michael Harry Yamson, who was sworn in as DACF Administrator on March 25, 2025, following unanimous parliamentary approval. President John Dramani Mahama had cited Yamson’s track record in corporate governance and financial systems as critical to restoring institutional credibility.

A seasoned management consultant and turnaround strategist with nearly 30 years of expertise, Yamson previously served as a Board Member at Unichem Ghana Group and Managing Partner at Ishmael Yamson and Associates. His career spans leadership roles across FMCG, telecommunications, agribusiness, and management consultancy.

Upon appointment, Yamson pledged major reforms aimed at improving transparency and efficiency, including a shift toward direct fiscal empowerment — increasing the proportion of resources transferred directly to assemblies to 80 per cent, up from an average of 53.5 per cent between 2019 and 2023. The Fund also introduced the Intelligent Expenditure Platform (Intellex) , an AI-enabled monitoring system designed to track disbursements from release to expenditure.

Other initiatives included the Community Partners Fund (CPF) , launched on March 26, 2026, to mobilise private sector participation in financing social infrastructure such as hospitals, schools and community facilities.

Expert calls for accountability

Commenting on the Auditor-General’s report, financial expert Major Ashirifie called for annual assessments of how public funds released to various MDAs are utilised. He urged Civil Society Organisations to mount intense pressure on the government and its appointees to enforce public financial management laws and ensure prudent use of state funds.

Major Ashirifie also criticised the practice of state institutions rushing to ratify their procurement processes only after the Auditor-General flags their transactions, and called for the abolition of ratification.

“We need to clear that thing. It’s not working,” he said. “We need to emphasise that ratification is not working. You have to do the right thing now, or you face the consequences.”

No comment from DACF Administrator

When The Fourth Estate wrote to the District Assemblies Common Fund Administrator, Michael Harry Yamson, for his comment, he did not respond. Subsequently, follow-up phone calls were met with a terse response from an administrative staff member at the Fund: “It’s not going to happen.”

The audit report has been submitted to Parliament for scrutiny, and the Public Accounts Committee is expected to summon the DACF Administrator to respond to the findings.