Finance Ministry rejects claim it withheld ABFA data from PIAC

The Ministry of Finance has rejected claim that it withheld information on the utilisation of the Annual Budget Funding Amount (ABFA) from the Public Interest and Accountability Committee (PIAC).

In a statement issued on Friday, October 23, 2026, the Ministry said it had provided PIAC with petroleum receipts and distribution data and explained the arrangements governing the use of ABFA resources, including funds ring-fenced for the Accra–Kumasi Expressway.

The clarification follows a PIAC statement dated October 21 concerning the exclusion of ABFA utilisation data from its 2026 Semi-Annual Report.

“The exclusion of ABFA utilisation data from PIAC’s report should therefore not be presented as evidence that the Ministry withheld information,” the Ministry stated.

According to the Ministry, officials participated in PIAC’s virtual validation workshop and held in-person meetings with the Committee to explain petroleum revenue receipts, distribution and the arrangements for ABFA utilisation.

On the Accra–Kumasi Expressway, the Ministry cited paragraph 572 of the 2026 Mid-Year Fiscal Policy Review, which states that all funds allocated to the project, including the total ABFA realised in 2026, have been ring-fenced. The funds will be used for construction when the contract is awarded.

The Ministry said the decision follows PIAC’s recommendation to stop spreading petroleum revenues thinly across numerous projects with limited economic impact.

It explained that concentrating the resources on the expressway is intended to deliver a major infrastructure investment with clear national benefits and value for money.

The Ministry also rejected suggestions that District Assemblies had been deprived of their share of ABFA resources.

It said the five per cent share due to the District Assemblies Common Fund is being paid from the Consolidated Fund, an arrangement it had explained to PIAC.

“Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies have therefore not been shortchanged by the decision to ring-fence ABFA resources for the expressway,” the statement said.

The Ministry reaffirmed its commitment to providing PIAC with the information required to discharge its mandate and to accounting publicly for petroleum revenues.

It added that relevant details would continue to be published in the Annual Report on Petroleum Funds, Petroleum Reconciliation Reports, Budget Statements and other fiscal reports.