According to the 2025 IMF Governance Diagnostic Report, Ghana’s ability to address corruption is significantly compromised by persistent underfunding of key accountability institutions. The report warns that the country’s anti-corruption framework is approaching a critical threshold.
The report, conducted in September 2023 by the IMF, indicates that key institutions such as the Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP), the Economic and Organised Crime Office (EOCO), and the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ) consistently receive less than half of the budget allocated to them by Parliament.
Consequently, the agencies tasked with investigating corruption, prosecuting financial crimes, safeguarding public funds, and protecting whistleblowers are functioning without the essential resources required for their operations.
The report highlights that while budget allocations are sanctioned each year, the actual disbursements from the Ministry of Finance are significantly lower than these amounts, resulting in institutions being unable to hire personnel, sustain critical investigations, enhance technology, or carry out specialized prosecutions.
Even the OSP, which was established to handle high-profile corruption cases, is required to seek “clearance” from the Ministry of Finance prior to hiring or compensating its staff, a scenario that the IMF characterizes as inconsistent with operational independence.
In addition to the funding crisis, the IMF cautions that Ghana’s anti-corruption framework is structurally precarious, labeling it as “fragmented, overlapping, and susceptible to political influence.” This exacerbates the systemic vulnerabilities caused by underfunding and further hampers the fight against corruption.
The report points out detrimental overlaps among the OSP, EOCO, and CHRAJ — three agencies that concurrently investigate corruption-related offenses but lack definitive coordination protocols.
This redundancy, the IMF argues, generates confusion, prolongs cases, and enables political figures to exploit institutional deficiencies.
The constitutional authority of the Attorney-General over all prosecutions diminishes the autonomy of agencies such as EOCO and OSP, rendering their prosecutorial independence more of a symbolic gesture than a guaranteed reality.
The IMF points to recent instances, such as the resignation of the inaugural Special Prosecutor and the dismissal of the Auditor-General, as indicators of political influence.
Despite advancements in digitalization, reforms in access to information, and improved procurement legislation, the IMF asserts that these achievements are overshadowed by significant structural deficiencies. Anti-corruption bodies are hindered by a lack of independence, insufficient funding, and ambiguous legal frameworks, which impede their ability to enforce the laws that Ghana has committed to upholding.
The IMF cautions that without substantial reforms — which include assured funding, clear mandates, and protection from political meddling — corruption will persist in siphoning off public resources, eroding investor trust, and jeopardizing Ghana’s economic recovery.
