Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs) will soon be hooked onto a new budget and financial management system, known as the Ghana Integrated Financial Management System (GIFMIS), to enhance effective management of government finances.
GIFMIS, which is a state of the art Government of Ghana official system, is targeted to meet all budgets, financial accounting and reporting, internal control, disbursements and auditing requirements.
Mr Michael Ampah, Leader of the Resource Team, disclosed this in Wa at a sensitization workshop for finance officers of municipal and district assemblies and heads of departments and agencies, organised by the Controller and Accountant's General's Department (CAGD).
Mr Ampah said the full implementation of GIFMIS would serve as a single source system for official budget creation and management, cash and treasury management, financial control, accounting and reporting for the country as a whole.
He said GIFMIS would use the latest version of the oracle E-Business suite software and rely on improved organisation and business processes.
Mr Ampah said the scope of the GIFMIS project included seven oracle E-Business suite modules namely; General Ledger, Accounts Payable, Account Receivable, Cash Management, Budgeting, Fixed Assets and Payroll.
On the benefits of GIFMIS, Mr Ampah said it sought to enhance confidence and credibility of the budget through greater comprehensiveness and transparency of information.
It also helps to improve budget planning and execution by way of providing timely and accurate data for budget management and decision making and allow for the decentralisation of financial functions and processes under the overall control of the Ministry of Finance.
Madam Boya Abdulai, Upper West Regional Director of CAGD, said the sensitization was meant to get the stakeholders equipped with information before it became operational.