He explained that the decision was to ensure full automation of the public financial management system and promote transparency and accountability in government spending.

“From January next year, if you don’t operate within the system, you cannot spend,” he stated.

The directive, he emphasised, was aimed at compelling all Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) to operate strictly within the electronic platform to enhance fiscal discipline and efficiency.

Mr. Ampem made the announcement when he addressed participants at the 11th Public Procurement Forum held in Accra yesterday on the theme: ‘GHANEPS: Enhancing Transparency, Efficiency and Effectiveness in Public Procurement.’

The forum, organised by the Public Procurement Authority (PPA), brought together policymakers, procurement officers, and suppliers to deliberate on strengthening the Ghana Electronic Procurement System (GHANEPS) and advancing the government’s digitalisation agenda.

He further disclosed that the Ministry of Finance was also taking steps to ensure that all procurement transactions would be conducted exclusively through GHANEPS.

“Very soon, if you don’t procure through GHANEPS, you cannot procure,” he said, urging entities yet to integrate with the platform to “start putting their house in order.”

According to him, about 55 per cent of procurement activities were still being carried out outside the system — a situation the Ministry was determined to address by making electronic procurement mandatory.

Touching on broader reforms, Mr. Ampem indicated that the government had amended the Public Procurement Act to strengthen compliance and enforcement, closing critical gaps in the system and aligning procurement practices with global standards.

Furthermore, he emphasised that effective procurement was synonymous with fiscal discipline, public trust, and national development, noting that about 40 per cent of Ghana’s total domestic revenue — approximately GH¢87 billion in 2025 — was projected to pass through the procurement system.

Mr. Ampem said the government was also leveraging procurement to promote made-in-Ghana goods, stimulate local production and create jobs, as part of efforts to reset the economy under President John Mahama’s leadership.

He urged MDAs to prioritise the purchase of locally produced goods to support Ghanaian industries.

The Chief Executive Officer of the Public Procurement Authority, Mr. Frank Mante, in his remarks, underscored the importance of e-procurement in combating corruption and unethical practices in the public sector.

He explained that the automation of procurement processes through GHANEPS would make transactions traceable and verifiable, thereby minimising manipulation, late tenders, and document alterations.

Citing international examples, Mr. Mante noted that countries like Indonesia, South Korea, and Somalia had recorded significant reductions in corruption and cost savings through e-procurement systems.

Additionally, Mr. Mante revealed that the full integration of GHANEPS and GIFMIS would ensure that procurement activities commence only when funds are committed, preventing the accumulation of arrears and ensuring fiscal discipline.

The World Bank West Hub Coordinator, Ms. Lina Tutunji, reaffirmed the bank’s strong partnership with Ghana and the PPA in modernising public procurement through the GHANEPS system to promote transparency and accountability.