PAC grills NITA over $6m debt - Probes GH¢6.7 payment to Infraco

The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) of Parliament has questioned a case involving Smart Infraco Limited, a private company contracted to commercialise the country’s excess e-government infrastructure capacity, and which owes the state $6 million, but has simultaneously received GH¢6.7 million from the Ministry of Communication, Digital Technology and Innovations without proper documentation. 

The matter came up yesterday when officials of the ministry and its implementing agency, the National Information Technology Agency (NITA), appeared before the committee to respond to infractions cited in the Auditor-General’s 2024 report.

Details

The Auditor-General’s 2024 report stated that Smart Infraco was required to pay the government $6 million in advances between 2020 and 2024, but failed to do so.

The company was to pay $ 2million in 2020 and $1 million each year from 2021 to 2024, but no payment has been made to date. 

In a separate infraction, the Ministry paid the same company GH¢6.7 million in December 2023 for a connectivity platform project without supporting documents such as certificates of work done, invoices or evidence of service delivery.

Committee members expressed shock that while the government had failed to recover $6 million from the company, it had simultaneously advanced GH¢6.7 million without documentation.

“So in one breath, this company owes you.

In another breath, you owe this company.

What prevents you from even setting off?

But then you are in turn paying without even documentation to this effect,” the Member of Parliament for Kumawu, Ernest Yaw Anim, stated.   

Response

Responding to the queries, the Director-General of the National Information Technology Agency (NITA), Mark-Oliver Kevor, admitted that none of the $6 million had been recovered despite letters and meetings with the company.

He explained that the ministry had referred the matter to the Attorney-General for legal advice following a dispute over contract addenda.

“Madam Chair, we have engaged them.

We have had a joint management meeting between NITA and Smart Infraco, trying to address this outstanding matter.

But we are at a dead end and that is the reason our mother ministry has taken over,” he said. 

The Deputy Minister of Communication, Digital Technology and Innovations, Mohammed Adams Sukparu, confirmed that the ministry was still bound by the contract with Smart Infraco.

He said several engagements with the company had not yielded results, hence the referral to the Attorney-General in February this year.

The PAC has since directed that the chief director, head of finance and other relevant officers reappear before the committee with all supporting documentation. It also indicated its intention to interrogate the Attorney-General and possibly invite Smart Infraco itself.

Cybersecurity

Also appearing before the committee was the Cybersecurity Authority (CSA) under the same ministry.

The acting Director-General of the CSA, Divine Selasi Agbeti, was questioned over an infraction cited in the Auditor-General’s 2023 report in which two former staff members continued to receive salaries after resigning from the authority.

Regulation 92 of the Public Financial Management Regulations (2019) requires the immediate stoppage of salary payments upon resignation or retirement, yet payroll records showed that GH¢31,263 had been paid to the two individuals.

Responding to the committee, Mr Agbeti explained that payroll preparation was handled by the Controller and Accountant-General’s Department, with the CSA only responsible for validating payments through the electronic salary payment voucher system.

He admitted that documentation around the resignations and payment processes remained unclear, describing parts of the case as a “grey area,” since initial engagements with the Controller’s Department suggested their records contradicted the Auditor-General’s findings, while one of the affected individuals denied ever receiving the payments.

He assured the committee that recovery efforts were underway. 

Beyond the payroll issue, Mr Agbeti highlighted the authority’s difficulty in retaining skilled staff due to low public sector salaries compared to the private sector and international offers, and urged the government to consider specialised incentive policies for cybersecurity professionals.