By Tabora Bojang
A senior official from the Accountant General’s Department, Ousman Darboe yesterday informed lawmakers that his office is facing ‘resistance’ from most government projects to embrace the Integrated Financial Management and Information System, IFMIS, a unified platform that aims to promote the efficiency of government’s financial management. It was introduced by government with support from donors to enhance transparency in public resource management and reduce corruption.
On September 29 2022, the Finance and Public Accounts Committee of the National Assembly passed a resolution resolving that “all government projects shall use the IFMIS system for all the accounting processes by the end of the year 2022.
The resolution tasked the Accountant General’s office to ensure this resolution is implemented.
However, Ousman Darboe, an official from the Accountant General’s office, disclosed that his office is struggling to get compliance from government related projects, and
most of them have no compelling reasons for their failure to comply.
According to him, implementation is progressing in institutions sub-vented by government with 26 already enrolled in the system including all the general hospitals, sub treasuries and the area councils.
“However, we are struggling with the self-accounting projects in getting them to accept IFMIS. Some will come up with small excuses while others will claim that the system is not giving them what they want. Others even blamed poor internet which is not plausible since institutions in remote entities like Bwiam Hospital are using it,” Darboe told NAMs.
He said once a person is able to utilise it, then anyone anywhere should be able to use it to achieve what he or she wants.
Banjul South NAM Fatoumatta Njie asked the official to tell the committee what is responsible for such resistance and what are its implications on public finance management and transparency.
The man from the Accountant General’s Department, Darboe responded: “Probably the willingness and transparency to expose may not also be there. Some are complaining about the internet but you will find them in their offices using their routers. So, they cannot dedicate resources to the system but can put it for personal use and other activities”.
Asked what his office is doing to remedy this situation and ensure the system is implemented in all government projects, he said they are now trying to use donors like the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund IMF to make the use of IFMIS as a requirement for all the projects that they are to fund.
“These donors have now started using it as conditions in their new projects,” Ousman said.
