Deputy Finance Minister Thomas Nyarko Ampem has disclosed that a recent audit exercise averted a possible wrongful payment of more than GH¢159 million in stipends allocated to teacher trainees through the Ghana Tertiary Education Commission.

He explained that the Ministry of Education had earlier indicated that an amount of GH¢160 million in trainee allowances remained unsettled. However, after auditors engaged GTEC for clarification, the Commission confirmed that by December 2024, there were no outstanding payments due.

The review further uncovered that GH¢6.1 million was still captured on the Ministry’s Bank Transfer Advice schedule at the Controller and Accountant-General’s Department, even though the same amount had already been disbursed by a development partner.

Addressing Parliament on Tuesday, March 10, Mr. Nyarko Ampem cautioned that inconsistencies of this nature could result in duplicate payments and point to lapses in financial controls, particularly in reconciling donor-funded disbursements with official government records.

He stressed that the situation underscores the importance of tighter supervision and improved collaboration among state institutions and development partners to safeguard public resources within the education sector.

“The Ministry of Education reported unpaid allowances totaling GHS160milion to teacher trainees under the Ghana Tertiary Education Commission (GTEC). When auditors engaged GTEC, the agency confirmed that as of December 2024, there were no outstanding arrears. Over GHS159million would have been lost but for this audit.

An amount of GHS6.1million appeared on the Ministry of Education’s BTA schedule at the control and accountant general’s department even though the same funds had been paid by a donor partner.

“Such entries open a door for double payments and exposed a dangerous pattern of weak oversight and porous coordination between donor and financial records,” Nyarko said.