Accra: The Minister of Finance, Dr Cassiel Ato Forson, has defended his ministry's decision to halt disbursements to certain government projects. According to him, an internal review uncovered loan funds being diverted to vehicles and conferences rather than the projects approved by Parliament under the Akufo-Addo-Bawumia administration.
According to Ghana Web, Dr Forson revealed these findings during an interview on the Citi Breakfast Show on Friday, July 24, 2026. He emphasized that the discovery was made shortly after he assumed office, highlighting that loans intended for specific projects were misallocated. "Loans contracted and approved by Parliament for specific projects had largely not been used for their core mandate. It was used to buy cars and for conferences," he stated.
The minister explained that these findings led to the suspension of further disbursements until his ministry could verify the allocation of these funds. Despite the readiness to proceed with the core work on the affected projects, Dr Forson could not authorise payments while consultancy fees and foreign conference travel were improperly charged against the loan facilities, which the state is eventually obligated to repay.
Dr Forson stressed his responsibility as the Finance Ministry's head to act as a gatekeeper over government borrowing. He noted that other ministries require the Finance Ministry's authorisation before committing the state to any form of debt. "I cannot sit down when there's been payment for consultancy, travel abroad for conferences, and they have loans. For God's sake, you will pay back. For God's sake, you are going to borrow," he emphasized.