Koforidua, Feb. 3, GNA - As part of government's efforts to decentralize the payment of salaries and pensions, the Controller and Accountant General Department (CACGD) was installing computers in the regions for the implementation of the Integrated Personnel Payroll Data Two (IPPD 2) project as from March, this year.

The IPPD 2, which would be implemented with the use of the Oracle Human Resource Management System (HRMS), followed the successful implementation of the IPPD 1 over the past four years under the government's Public Financial Management Reform (PUFMAR) programme. The Deputy Controller and Accountant General in-charge Financial Management Services, Mr Kwabena Adjei-Mensah, announced this at the inauguration of the computers at Koforidua on Friday, the first regional capital to benefit from the project.

According to him, the advantages of the project included the efficiency and stability in Payroll Runs, payment integration with other systems and the elimination of the cumbersome procedures civil servants and pensioners faced in the payment of salaries and pensions. The computerization, he said, involved a camera taking the photograph of pensioner which is captured into the computer with all the required personal data, saying 200 persons could be covered a day. Mr Adjei-Mensah announced that under the programme, Treasuries would be Ministry Specific and integrated into each Ministry, Regional Co-ordinating Council (RCC) and eventually cover the 138 District Assemblies.

He said Sub-Consolidated Fund Special Bank Account would be opened for each Ministry, RCC and District Assembly into which shall be lodged the departmental allocations of Ministries/Departments/Agencies (MDAs) at the headquarters, regional and district levels.

According to him, as from June, the printing of pay vouchers for civil servants would, as from June, this year, be processed in the regions to ensure timely payment of salaries and pensions as well implementation of the provisions of the Financial Administration Act, Public Procurement and Material Audit and Budget payment Expenditure Management systems.

Mr Adjei-Mensah announced that there were currently about 87,000 pensioners in the system who draw about 87 billion cedis monthly and assured them that the new system would eliminate delays in the payment of pensions and arrears since any new increase in salaries would be effected as soon as new salaries were announced.

The Eastern Regional Director of the CAGD, Mr Victor Donkor, said there were about 12,000 pensioners in the region and assured them that everything was being done to ensure that the system was implemented efficiently.