COCOBOD BOSS COMMENDS HEADS OF SUBSIDIARIES, OTHERS FOR THEIR AUDIT COMPLIANCE

Date: 25th June 2021

The Chief Executive of the Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD), Hon Joseph Boahen Aidoo, has commended the heads of subsidiaries, divisions, and departments for their admirably high rate of compliance with recommendations of the cocoa regulatory body’s audit committee over the past three years.

He said, in his time so far as Chief Executive, he has observed incremental improvements, over the years, in compliance and cooperation with the internal auditors of COCOBOD and the audit committee, and with it have come improvements in decision making, fiscal discipline and accountability.

The COCOBOD Boss made this statement on Friday, 25 June 2021, in his opening address on the first day of a three-day Special Audit Meeting which involved all subsidiaries, divisions, and departments of COCOBOD. The purpose of the meeting was to review and finalise COCOBOD’s audit report for the 2020 financial year.

The Public Financial Management Act, 2016, grants public institutions a six-month period after each financial year to submit an audit report to their sector Ministers, Parliament, Office of the President and the Auditor-General.

Hon Boahen Aidoo reminded the various Directors and Managers present at the meeting to always keep in mind that COCOBOD is a public institution which is accountable to the government, cocoa farmers, and the good people of Ghana. This accountability, he added, is exacted through the institution’s internal audit structures and the auditor general’s office.

Considering the pivotal role that COCOBOD plays in the economy of Ghana, and the quantum of activities and transactions that take place, the importance of the audit committee cannot be overemphasised, he stated.

The committee has not been constituted to witch-hunt anybody or to instigate problems for any staff. It is, essentially, in place to support COCOBOD’s affairs and help improve efficiency and effectiveness, he emphasised.

“The support from the audit committee will ultimately ensure that management achieves its set objectives and targets in each financial year as well as ensure that it works within the confines of the laws of Ghana,” Hon Boahen Aidoo added.

He urged the heads of the subsidiaries, divisions, and departments to continue to accord the audit committee and COCOBOD’s internal audit department, all the necessary support to fulfil their mandate.

The Deputy Director-General of the Internal Audit Agency and Chairman of COCOBOD’s Audit Committee, Mr Thomas Thompson Aryee, said in his remarks after the first day’s meeting that he was pleased with the cordial relationship which exists between the committee and the various heads, directors, and managers of COCOBOD.

There have been significant improvements in the internal control systems of the institution over the past three years, and that have had a positive impact on compliance and implementation of audit recommendations, he affirmed.