Student leaders of the University of Environment and Sustainable Development (UESD), Somanya, in the Eastern Region, have undergone a leadership training workshop organised by the Office of the Dean of Students Affairs (ODSA). The training, held at the Auditorium, Multi-Purpose Building of the University, focused on best practices in budgeting, procurement, and auditing, forms part of the University’s commitment to nurturing students who embody its core values of Honesty, Opportunities, Perseverance, and Enterprising (HOPE).
Participants were executives from the Student Representative Council (SRC), Junior Common Room (JCR), Graduate Students Association of Ghana (GRASAG), Sustainable Development Students Association (SuDSA), School of Natural and Environmental Sciences Students Association (SNESSA), the Alumni Association, and the UESD representatives of the National Union of Ghana Students (NUGS).
In her presentation of internal audit processes, the Director of Internal Audit, Ms. Joyce Anastasia Sam, highlighted key functional areas of internal auditing, including monitoring internal controls, examining financial and operational information, reviewing compliance and governance systems, and assessing operating activities. She also explained pre-auditing as a critical component of the auditing process and discussed withholding tax, noting that UESD is a withholding entity of the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) and all student associations within the University are similarly classified as withholding entities.
Ms. Sam impressed upon the student leaders not to view auditors as adversaries, but as partners who work to safeguard their interests and promote best practices in financial management. She further advised them to carefully review all documents to ensure that required documents are properly completed before submission to the Internal Audit Directorate, in order to avoid unnecessary delays. She stressed that all payments must receive the requisite approvals from the appropriate Deans.
The Head of Budget at the Finance Directorate, Mr. Isaac Fenyi, spoke on the importance of budgeting, budget preparation processes, and budget monitoring. He emphasised that public funds cannot be expended without an approved budget.
Citing Section 21(5) of the Public Financial Management (PFM) Act, 2016 (Act 921), Mr. Fenyi stated that every public institution is required to operate with an approved budget, without which no expenditure can be made. He also discussed procedures for obtaining budget approval, the importance of budget reviews, and the consequences of failing to retire imprests. He urged student leaders to remain committed to sound budgeting and effective budgetary control practices.
An officer from the Procurement Unit, Mr. Michael Grant, delivered a presentation on procurement processes at UESD. He explained that the University operates a procurement plan in line with directives from the Public Procurement Authority and advised student leaders to transact business only with suppliers duly registered with the University, in order to avoid procurement breaches.