Francis Sardauna in Katsina
The Katsina State Government has deployed supervisors and field officers to Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) across the state to monitor public spending and ensure compliance with financial rules and regulations.
The exercise, under the Financial Management Monitoring (FMM) initiative, is expected to last for three days, after which the monitoring teams will submit “unbiased recommendations” to the state Ministry of Finance to strengthen financial management and accountability.
Speaking at a briefing for the supervisors and field officers ahead of the exercise yesterday, the state Commissioner for Finance, Bello Hussaini Kagara, said it aimed at accessing financial management processes across the MDAs in the state.
He explained that the exercise would also help identify gaps in the implementation of financial policies and ensure that the receipt, disbursement and utilisation of public funds complied with applicable fiscal laws and regulations.
He said the supervisors and the field officers would identify weaknesses in revenue collection, expenditure management and recommend measures to expand the state’s tax net, block revenue leakages and eliminate wasteful spending.
He added that the findings and recommendations from the exercise would enable the government to improve its financial management strategies, strengthen revenue generation and ensure that public funds delivered greater value to the people.
Kagara said, “This initiative of Financial Management Monitoring (FMM) in the Katsina State is a new activity put in place to rejuvenate the process of handling and evaluating the money being spent by the state in the course of offering and delivering social economic activities within the state.
“I urged you (supervisors and field officers) to familiarise yourselves with the questionnaires and guidelines for the exercise and ensure that respondents (MDAs) understood the questions and provided accurate information.”
In his remarks, the state Technical Adviser on Treasury Single Account (TSA) Implementation, Dr. Salisu Ladan Sabuwa, admonished the supervisors and field officers to ensure that they collate reliable and accurate data during the exercise.
He noted that experts had been engaged to analyse the data generated through the exercise, adding that the reliability of their findings would depend on the quality of information supplied by the participating MDAs.
He further disclosed that the exercise would help the state government determine whether substantial investments in public services and development projects were producing the expected results.