The Director-General of the Internal Audit Agency, Dr. E.O. Osae on 29th December, 2022 inaugurated the Audit Committee of the Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital (KBTH).
The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Hospital, Dr. Opoku Ware Ampomah in his opening remarks said the Audit Committee has strengthened him as a leader. He emphasized that the establishment of the Committee has been very instrumental in preventing the institution from being cited for serious infractions. The CEO reiterated that the Audit Committee has helped to improve governance structures of the institution and made it compliant with relevant laws. He praised the previous Committee for helping to reduce infractions and welcomed the new Committee.
Members of the Committee are Mr. Nathan Yankey (IAA Rep and Chairman of the Committee), Madam Stella Segbawu (IAA Rep), Madam Rebecca A. Lomo (ICAG Rep), Messiers Charles Ofori and Munir Alhassan are representatives of the Hospital. Madam Adelaide Obeng-Kesse is the Secretary of the Committee.
Delivering his address, Dr. Osae informed the Committee about its three (3) statutory roles provided under the Public Financial Management Act 2016, which are mandatory, advisory and supporting. He tasked members of the Committee to put their accounting expertise at the disposal of leadership and support it to deliver on its mandate of saving human lives. He mentioned that the mandatory roles of the Committee include supporting Management to implement recommendations from Internal and External Audit Reports, directives of PAC of Parliament and monitoring reports. Dr. Osae continued that the Committee is required to prepare and submit a copy of an annual report on its activities to the Office of the President which gives the Presidency a fair idea of the control systems in the institution.
The Director-General advised the Committee to make itself available for entrance and exit meetings of external auditors in order to appreciate audit issues raised and find solutions to them before they appear in the Management Letter of the Auditor-General. On the advisory roles, Dr. Osae implored members of the Committee to put their advisory and assurance services at the disposal of the institution. The supporting roles of the Committee according to Dr. Osae include assisting the Internal Auditor to prepare and submit relevant reports. He stated that the Agency is not only naming and shaming but also applying sanctions for non-submission and late submission of reports.
Dr. Osae revealed that the under listed reports are due for submission:
i) Annual Internal Audit Performance Report is due on 30th December, 2022.
ii) 4th Quarter Internal Audit Report is due by 31st January, 2023
iii) Risk-Based Internal Audit Work plan is due by 31st January, 2023
iv) Annual Audit Committee Report is due by 30th June, 2023.
In concluding, Dr. Osae charged the Committee to ensure that the Hospital is in the news for the right reasons. He offered the assistance of the Agency, stressing that his KPIs include the reduction of financial irregularities. He advised the Committee to develop a working relationship and hold half-yearly meetings with the Sector Ministry.
In his closing remarks, the CEO thanked Dr. Osae for inaugurating the Committee and said he has gained a lot of hope from his words. He pledged the support of Management to the work of the new Committee and mentioned that with its help, he was optimistic KBTH would be a symbol of hope.
