The Chairperson of the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) of Parliament, Abena Osei Asare, has highly commended the acting Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Minerals Income Investment Fund (MIIF), Justina Nelson, for her competence and commitment to institutional reform.
At the committee’s sitting yesterday to review the Auditor-General’s Report on MIIF for the year ended December 31, 2024, Mrs Nelson earned praise as she impressed the committee members with her detailed explanation of issues flagged in the report, exhibited a grasp of financial regulations and demonstrated proactive efforts to address audit infractions inherited from the previous managers of the fund.
Gold trade, royalties recovery
Touching on MIIF’s gold trading activities, Mrs Nelson explained how the Fund piloted gold trading in 2023 with three aggregators and later expanded to five, a development that generated approximately GH¢8 million in revenue.
She stated that following the establishment of the Ghana Gold Board, MIIF had transitioned the aggregators to the new agency and ceased direct gold trading to enable the Fund to remain within its legal mandate.
The MIIF CEO further confirmed that all outstanding royalties, amounting to GH¢29 million, as cited in the audit report, had been fully recovered, while previously unaccounted payments of GH¢39,043 had been reconciled with supporting vouchers and receipts submitted to the Auditor-General.
Mrs Nelson added that MIIF had discontinued the use of restricted procurement for high-value contracts and, with the new amendment of the Public Financial Management (PFM) Act, all procurement plans were submitted to the Ministry of Finance for prior approval in line with regulatory requirements.
PAC satisfied
The PAC chairperson particularly commended Mrs Nelson for demonstrating both honesty and technical depth in her responses, as she answered a barrage of questions and enquiries from the members of the committee.
“I’m not commending you because you are a woman, but because you’re competent,” she said. “You came well prepared. You quoted the sections, you knew what you had done, what you hadn’t done, and what you couldn’t do in your capacity,” the PAC Chairperson said.
Reforms
Mrs Nelson, who appeared with members of her management team, including the Chief Finance Officer, David Awuah Mensah, the Director of Internal Audit, Martin Adjei, the Head of Procurement, Theresa Gyasi Antwi, and the Head of Legal, Louisa Quaicoe, outlined a series of measures introduced to strengthen MIIF’s governance and compliance framework.
She disclosed that MIIF had established a Compliance Unit and a Risk Department as part of broad reforms to enhance internal controls and prevent future breaches in procurement and financial management.
On the issue of a $3.8 million advanced payment made to Commodity Monitor Limited for mercury-free gold processing equipment exceeding the statutory 15 per cent threshold, Mrs Nelson admitted that the transaction contravened the Public Financial Management (PFM) Regulations but clarified that it predated her administration.
However, Mrs Nelson added that the contract had since been fully executed, with the equipment delivered and operational.
Lessons from that incident, she pointed out, had informed MIIF’s current strict adherence to procurement laws.
Leadership, institutional culture
Responding to questions about her leadership style, Mrs Nelson described her relationship with staff as cordial, collaborative and professional, emphasising mutual respect and teamwork.
She acknowledged past false social media speculation about internal friction, stating that those issues had long been dealt with, and that the MIIF team remained cohesive and dedicated to the Fund’s reforms and performance objectives.
Mrs Nelson reaffirmed MIIF’s commitment to transparency, accountability and prudent management of Ghana’s mineral income to support national development priorities.
Visibly impressed, members of the committee took turns to urge Mrs Nelson to maintain her reform-driven leadership and continue strengthening systems for effective management of the Fund.
