Ghana’s progress in budget transparency has suffered a dramatic setback, plummeting from a 46-point score in 2023 to just 22 in 2025, according to the latest Open Budget Survey (OBS) 2025. The decline, revealed in the global assessment of public financial management, underscores deepening concerns over the country’s commitment to accountability, openness, and fiscal responsibility. The survey, conducted by the International Budget Partnership (IBP), evaluates 122 countries across three core pillars: budget transparency, public participation, and oversight. Ghana’s overall score of 25 out of 100—far below the internationally benchmarked threshold of 61—signals systemic failures in how the government discloses, engages, and monitors public finances.
A Decline in Transparency: Missing Documents and Delayed Disclosures
The most glaring issue identified in the report is the systematic failure to publish critical budget documents in a timely manner. Under international standards, governments are expected to release eight essential budget documents, including the Executive Budget Proposal, Citizens Budget, and in-year reports. However, Ghana only published five documents during the assessment period:
- Pre-budget statement
- Enacted budget
- Mid-year review
- Year-end report
- Audit report
Missing or delayed documents included:
– Executive Budget Proposal – A foundational document outlining government spending priorities, which was either not published or released outside the required timeline.
– Citizens Budget – A simplified version of the budget designed for public understanding, which remains inaccessible to most citizens.
– In-year reports – Real-time updates on budget execution, crucial for tracking deviations from approved allocations.
The report further revealed that only two of the published documents met the required standards for comprehensiveness, meaning even when information was released, it lacked sufficient detail, clarity, or accessibility to enable meaningful public scrutiny. This information gap severely hampers citizens’ ability to monitor government spending, detect mismanagement, and hold officials accountable.
“Transparency is not just about publishing documents; it’s about ensuring those documents are timely, detailed, and usable by the public,” the OBS report stated. “The absence of complete and accessible data weakens accountability and increases the risk of corruption and inefficiency in public resource allocation.”
Public Participation: A Modest Improvement, But Still Lagging
While Ghana saw a slight improvement in public participation, rising from 22 to 33 points between 2023 and 2025, the progress remains insufficient compared to global peers. Key developments contributing to this modest gain include:
– Increased consultations by the Ministry of Finance with civil society and stakeholders before budget formulation.
– Greater involvement of parliamentary committees in reviewing budget proposals.
– Engagement initiatives by the Ghana Audit Service, which have allowed citizens to participate in audit processes and question financial irregularities.
However, the report highlighted critical gaps, particularly in the implementation phase of the budget. Unlike in the planning stage, where some citizen input is solicited, there are no formal mechanisms for public oversight once funds are disbursed. This means citizens have little to no way of tracking how their taxes are spent at the local or project level, leaving them in the dark about waste, corruption, or misallocation of resources.
Oversight Remains Weak: Parliament and Audit Service Fall Short
Ghana’s oversight mechanisms—critical for ensuring government spending aligns with national priorities—remain underdeveloped, with a composite score of 33. Breakdowns include:
– Parliament’s score of 28 – Indicating limited effectiveness in scrutinizing government finances. Challenges include:
– Delayed publication of committee reports, leaving gaps in accountability.
– Weak legislative oversight, where MPs often lack the technical expertise or resources to thoroughly review budget proposals.
– Lack of an independent fiscal institution, a body that could provide objective economic analysis and fiscal forecasts.
– Ghana Audit Service’s score of 44 – While better than Parliament’s, it still falls below international standards. The service, though active in auditing government accounts, struggles with:
– Timely reporting of audit findings.
– Limited follow-up on audit recommendations, leaving unaddressed financial irregularities.
“Strong oversight is the backbone of a transparent budget system,” the report emphasized. “Without independent scrutiny, governments can easily divert funds, engage in corruption, or prioritize spending that does not serve public interests.”
Stakeholder Reactions: Urgent Calls for Reform
Civil society organizations and governance experts have strongly condemned the transparency decline, urging immediate reforms to restore public trust.
Mr. Mohammed Tajudeen Abdulai, Executive Director of SEND Ghana, stressed that budget transparency is the cornerstone of good governance. “When citizens have access to information and can participate in decision-making, it leads to better service delivery, reduced corruption, and stronger institutions,” he said. “Ghana risks losing credibility if it continues on this downward trajectory.”
Madam Harriet Nuamah Agyemang, also of SEND Ghana, painted a worrying trend in Ghana’s performance, noting that the country’s transparency score has dropped steadily from 40% in 2019 to just 25% in 2025. She called for greater citizen involvement not just in budget planning, but also in monitoring implementation at the community level. *”Transparency must extend beyond Accra—it must reach the grassroots*, where projects are executed and funds are spent,” she urged.
In response, Madam Abena Osei-Asare, Chairperson of Parliament’s Public Accounts Committee, acknowledged the validity of the concerns but argued that the OBS findings should spark constructive dialogue rather than mere criticism. She pointed to recent reforms, such as the Public Financial Management Act (PFMA), as steps in the right direction. However, she admitted that more must be done, particularly in strengthening collaboration between Parliament and the Ministry of Finance to ensure:
– Timely publication of all budget documents.
– Simplified financial reporting to enhance public understanding.
– Stronger parliamentary oversight to prevent budgetary slippages.
International Support and Recommendations for Change
The British High Commission in Ghana, represented by Mr. Hooman Nouruzi, described the transparency decline as a “call to action” and reaffirmed the UK’s commitment to supporting Ghana in:
– Strengthening public financial management systems.
– Improving audit processes to ensure accountability and efficiency.
– Expanding civil society engagement in budget processes.
To address these challenges, the OBS report and stakeholders propose key reforms, including:
1. Ensuring the timely publication of all eight required budget documents, with clear deadlines and publicly accessible formats.
2. Establishing an independent fiscal institution to provide neutral economic analysis and budgetary advice.
3. Expanding citizen participation throughout the entire budget cycle—from planning to implementation to evaluation.
4. Strengthening parliamentary oversight by:
– Mandating timely publication of committee reports.
– Providing training for MPs on financial scrutiny.
– Enhancing the powers of audit bodies to follow up on recommendations.
5. Improving public awareness through:
– Simplified financial reports (e.g., Citizens Budgets).
– Digital platforms for real-time tracking of government spending.
– Community-level financial literacy programs to empower citizens to demand accountability.
The Way Forward: Restoring Trust and Ensuring Sustainable Development
The sharp decline in Ghana’s budget transparency score is not merely a statistical anomaly—it is a warning sign of deeper systemic issues in governance. While some progress has been made in public participation and oversight, the fundamental weaknesses in transparency risk eroding public trust, fueling corruption, and undermining economic stability.
For Ghana to achieve sustainable development, it must prioritize transparency, strengthen institutions, and foster active citizen engagement. This requires:
– Political will to enforce budget laws and hold officials accountable.
– Technological investments to digitize financial records and improve data accessibility.
– Civil society mobilization to monitor government spending and challenge mismanagement.
– International cooperation to share best practices and provide technical assistance.
“A transparent budget is not just about numbers—it’s about empowering people to take control of their own governance,” the OBS report concluded. “Ghana has the potential to reverse this decline, but it demands urgent action from all stakeholders—government, parliament, civil society, and the public.”
The path forward is clear: restore transparency, rebuild trust, and ensure that every ghana cedi is spent accountably, efficiently, and for the public good**.