Accra, Aug. 9, GNA - The World Bank has commended the Audit Service for continuing to show progress in the clearing of backlog of audit arrears and submitting annual reports to Parliament in compliance with statutory deadline of June 30, each year.

A statement signed by Mr. Kwesi Okyere, Public Relations Officer of the Audit Service said for the first time since independence the Auditor-General was able to submit its 2005 report on the consolidated fund to Parliament within the statutory deadline.

The commendation said the Auditor-General's report on the Public Accounts on the Consolidated Fund for the year ended 31st December 2006 has been submitted to Parliament, again, within the stipulated time. The statement said; "these were contained in an aide-memoire on the 2007 External Review of Public Financial Management (ERPFM) issued by the Bank after their recent review.

The 2007 ERPFM mission to the country was in line with the Multi-Donor Budget Support (MDBS) framework for Ghana jointly funded by the World Bank and a number of development partners."

These achievements were registered notwithstanding the capacity constraints at the Audit Service and the fact that most of the public boards, corporations and statutory institutions' accounts and financial statements continue to lag behind for several years.

This, the statement said the World Bank report indicated, "still poses a formidable challenge," as well as the need for the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) of Parliament to review the audit reports on a timely and issue its reports so that the Auditor-General could produce a status report on the follow-up to his recommendations.

According to the aide-memoire, after the Auditor-General's report on Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) for 2003 was laid in Parliament in March 2005, the PAC submitted its report to the full House in July 2006, which adopted it during the same month.

However, the statement said at the time of the World Bank's visit in May this year, PAC was considering Auditor-General's report on MDAs account for 2004-2005, which was laid in February 2007.

It said with regards to statutory funds, the mission received during the visit, copies of the 2005 audited accounts for District Assembly Common Funds, National Health Insurance Funds, Road Funds and the GETFund, and that the office of the Auditor-General was in the process of incorporating significant issues on these statutory funds in the public boards and corporations 2005 to Parliament.