Emmanuel Kehinde, Ilorin
Kwara state Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq on Thursday said his administration is making deliberate efforts to further open government books using standard institutional frameworks for transparency and accountability.
The Governor said this in Ilorin while declaring open the Sensitisation Workshop on International Public Sector Accounting Standard (IPSAS) GO-LIVE organised by the state Ministry of Finance.
“Today, we are taking another bold step to strengthen institutional frameworks to promote transparency and accountability. This is meant to standardise financial reporting of the government. It is a system that brings public expenditure under closer scrutiny,” according to the Governor who was represented by Secretary to the Government Prof. Mamman Saba Jibril.
“It covers all sectors of accounting, starting from budgeting, auditing and financial reporting at both national and sub-national levels. Importantly, this step admits Kwara into the comity of Nigerian states that have moved away from cash basis of financial reporting to the IPSAS’ accrual basis.”
The workshop had in attendance dignitaries from the three arms of government in the state, including representative of the House of Assembly Speaker Hon. Ibrahim Ambali; Commissioner for Finance Florence Olasumbo Oyeyemi; representative of the state Chief Judge, Justice Halimo Suleiman; Special Adviser to the Governor on Strategy Alhaji Saadu Salaudeen; and Special Assistant on Religion (Islam) Ibrahim Danmegoro; among others.
AbdulRazaq noted that the action is the new global standard which he said deepens quality financial reporting, improves decision making, and makes the government more accountable to the people.
He commended the technical partners and supervisory Ministry of Finance for a job well done, appealing to all stakeholders in attendance to recommit themselves to information sharing in an honest and efficient way.
“To make this process a success, I appeal to all stakeholders to recommit themselves to information sharing in an honest and efficient way. This will guide the government in making better decisions anchored on facts,” he added.
Olasumbo, in her welcome address, said the state is moving from a cash-basis accounting system to an accrual basis, a shift she noted makes revenue and expenses to be recognised immediately in any transaction.
She implored officials who have been trained on the IPSAS accounting system to put what they learnt in good use for the maximum benefit of the state.
She commended the government for committing huge resources to acquire the needed software and building capacity for the personnel.
Alhaji Salau Zubairu, a director in the office of Accountant General of the Federation, expressed delight at Kwara being consistently ranked top for a transparent accounting system in Nigeria, urging Governor AbdulRazaq to keep it up.
“Yesterday, just before coming, I tried to look at the accountability index where the federal and sub-national governments were assessed, using five specific criteria. I checked Kwara in the list of performance rankings and discovered it is among the top ten,” he said.
“This is a commendable effort (by the state government) and I think that is the essence of this sensitisation. It isfor us to sustain this achievement.”
