Africa-Press – Gambia. The Finance and Public Accounts Committee (FPAC) on Thursday presented an update to the National Assembly on the status of government imprests, highlighting progress in recoveries while noting persistent gaps in financial accountability.
As of 30 April 2025, the committee reported that a total of D18,812,461.80 in imprests across ministries, departments, and agencies remains unretired.
FPAC Vice Chairperson, Hon. Alagie Mbowe, told lawmakers that while a significant share of the funds has been reconciled, substantial amounts are still pending.
“The fully retired employees now stand at about D11,015,883. That’s retired with evidence. Fully recovered through payroll; remember some staff who are still on payroll have been deducted. So far, they have deducted D4.8 million from the salaries of government employees who failed to retire,” Mbowe said.
He explained that the remaining discrepancies stem from incomplete employee service cycles and accounting errors, which have hindered full reconciliation.
“The outstanding amount remains about D18 million, with some errors totaling D575,000 and incomplete employee cycles of D417,000,” he added.
The committee also flagged unresolved issues in broader government financial management, including delayed reconciliations and pending legislative reforms. “All unreconciled government accounts indicated in the audited accounts are to be reconciled by the Accountant General before the end of the financial year 2022. We have not gotten any update from the Office of the Vice President on that,” Mbowe noted.
He further stated that the revised Public Finance Bill and updated Financial Regulations (2016) are still awaiting cabinet approval before being tabled at the National Assembly.
“The government, through the Minister of Finance, endeavors to table before the National Assembly the revised public finance bill and the revision of the Financial Regulation 2016 before the National Assembly. The last update we have is that the bill is at the level of the cabinet, which is yet to apply a cabinet for it to be brought to the National Assembly,” he said.
Despite the setbacks, FPAC reaffirmed its commitment to robust oversight and accountability. “The committee will continue monitoring these issues, and by the next session, we will provide a more comprehensive update on every single issue that is not closed,” Mbowe assured.
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