Section – 21 – Debate by Parliament of the Auditor-General's reports
Parliament shall debate reports of the Auditor-General on the public accounts of Ghana, the statement of foreign exchange receipts and payments of the Bank of Ghana and other special audits and shall appoint where necessary, in the public interest, committees to deal with any matters arising from the report.
Section – 22 – Audit of accounts by Auditor-General or as requested by Parliament
The Auditor-General may whenever Parliament so requests and may, of his own motion inquire into and report on any matter relating to
(a) the financial affairs of the Government or public property; and
(b) any person or organisation in receipt of financial aid from the Government or in respect of whom financial aid from the Government is sought.
Section – 23 – Publication of reports
(1) The Auditor-General shall publish his reports on the public accounts of Ghana and the statement of foreign exchange receipts and payments of the Bank of Ghana as soon as the reports have been presented to the Speaker to be laid before Parliament.
(2) The Auditor-General shall submit copies of the published reports to
(a) the Government Archivist;
(b) all public and University libraries in Ghana;
(c) the libraries of the Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration (GIMPA) and the Management Development and Productivity Institute (MDPI);
(d) members of the Board; and
(e) any other institution approved by the Board.
Section – 24 – Auditing of the office of the Auditor-General
The accounts of the office of the Auditor-General shall be audited annually and reported upon by an auditor appointed by Parliament.
Section – 25 – Submission of annual report on activities of the Service
The Board shall submit to the President and Parliament as soon as possible but in any event not later than eight months after the end of each financial year a report on the activities of the Service during the year to which the report relates.
Section – 26 – Expenses of the Service charged on the Consolidated Fund
The administrative expenses of the office of the Auditor-General including all salaries, allowances, gratuities and pensions payable to or in respect of persons serving in the Audit Service shall be a charge on the Consolidated Fund.
Section – 27 – Annual estimates of the Service
The Board shall at least two months before the end of the financial year submit to the President the estimates of the Service; and the President shall at least one month before the end of the financial year cause the estimates to be laid before Parliament without revision but with any recommendations that the President may make on them.
Section – 28 – Stationing of officers in organisations subject to audit
(1) The Auditor-General may require any organisation or body subject to audit by the Auditor-General to make available while the audit is being carried on, suitable office accommodation for the proper conduct of the audit.
(2) The Auditor-General shall require every person employed in his office who is to examine the accounts of an organization under this Act to comply with security arrangements applicable to, and to take any oath of secrecy required to be taken by persons employed in that organization and every such person shall comply with the requirement.
(3) The Auditor-General shall station in Parliament House, permanent staff to enable Parliament carry out effectively its duties in respect of reports submitted by the Auditor-General to Parliament.
Section – 29 – Audit observations
(1) The Auditor-General or any authorised person acting on his behalf shall, as a result of an audit conducted by him, issue observations to the Controller and Accountant-General or the management of the audited organisation and the comments made by the management shall be returned to the Auditor-General within 30 days after the receipt of the observation.
(2) A person who fails or refuses to reply to the audit observations within the period specified in subsection (1) shall, if the Auditor-General so directs, have his emoluments and allowances withheld for so long as the person fails to comply.
Section – 30 – Audit Report Implementation Committees
(1) An institution, body or organisation which is subject to auditing by the Auditor-General shall establish an Audit Report Implementation Committee, comprising members of
(a) the Governing Board or Council of that institution, body or organisation where such Council or Board exist by law; or
(b) a Ministerial Committee for Ministries, Departments and Agencies of the Central Government, or
(c) a Special Committee of the District Assembly.
(2) It shall be the duty of the Audit Report Implementation Committee to ensure that the head of an institution, body or organisation to which subsection (1) applies
(a) pursues the implementation of matters in all audit reports as well as the Auditor-General's reports endorsed by Parliament as well as financial matters raised in the reports of internal monitoring units in the institution, body or organisation; and
(b) annually prepares a statement showing the status of implementation of recommendation made in all audit reports as well as the Auditor-General's reports which have been accepted by Parliament and any other related directives of Parliament.
(3) The statement shall show remedial action taken or proposed to be taken to avoid or minimise the recurrence of undesirable features in the accounts and operations of the institution, body or organisation and the time frame for action to be completed.
(4) The statement referred to in subsection (3) shall be endorsed by the relevant Minister and forwarded to Parliament, Office of the President and the Auditor-General within six months after Parliamentary decisions on the Auditor-General's report.
(5) In the performance of its functions under this Act, an Audit Report Implementation Committee may co-opt any senior management personnel to serve on the Committee.