The Minister for Finance, Cassiel Ato Forson, has presented the Value for Money Office Bill to Parliament, describing it as a major reform aimed at eliminating long-standing inefficiencies in Ghana’s public financial management system.

Addressing the House, Dr Forson said the proposed legislation is designed to confront recurring problems such as inflated contracts, abandoned projects, cost overruns and wasteful public spending.

He explained that the Bill seeks to institutionalise a robust value-for-money framework to guarantee that every cedi spent by government delivers optimal outcomes in terms of economy, efficiency, effectiveness, equity and sustainability.

Under the proposal, the Value for Money Office will operate as an independent and specialised oversight body with a clearly defined technical mandate. Its responsibilities will include conducting value-for-money assessments, issuing mandatory Value for Money Certificates before the award of major public contracts, monitoring compliance and enforcing sanctions where breaches occur.

Dr Forson stressed that the primary goal of the legislation is to strengthen fiscal discipline, minimise waste, enhance public confidence and reinforce Ghana’s governance and accountability systems.

He added that the new law will help curb contract inflation, standardise pricing across government entities and reshape the country’s public financial management framework.

By tightening oversight and ensuring strict compliance, the Office is expected to produce measurable cost savings, improve the quality of public sector projects and promote fairer allocation of resources.

The Minister noted that the Bill aligns Ghana with international best practices in public expenditure management. He referenced institutions such as the National Audit Office in the United Kingdom and the Government Accountability Office in the United States, as well as similar value-for-money systems in Canada and other advanced economies, as successful models for enhancing accountability and optimising public funds.

He concluded that establishing the Value for Money Office will boost public trust and investor confidence while ensuring that government investments yield tangible social and economic benefits for the Ghanaian people.