As the fiscal year 2023 comes to an end, the Office of the Accountant General of the Federation (OAGF) has given a strict notice to all Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs) on the closing of 2023 accounts and the start of 2024 budget access.
The notice was included in the annual Federal Treasury Circular with reference number TRYA7&B7/2023/OAGF/CAD/026/Vol.V/823, dated December 19, 2023, and signed by Dr. Oluwatoyin Madein, Accountant General of the Federation (AGF).
As the implementation of the 2023 Appropriation Act comes to an end, both recurring and capital expenditures for the current fiscal year will be ended on December 31, 2023.
This represents a critical deadline for MDAs to complete their financial activities and comply with the OAGF’s recommendations.
For MDAs that use the Government Integrated Financial Management Information System (GIFMIS) and the Treasury Single Account (TSA), the process will be quick and automatic.
Madein issued the following statement: “Both ledger periods and access to funds will be closed online, real-time, by midnight of December 31st, 2023” .
“TSA-Sub Accounts of MDAs holding regular budgetary funds with a recurring component will also be automatically closed at midnight.” The OAGF issued a strong warning against any attempts to evade the closure procedure.
“Transferring funds to hidden accounts or engaging in practices such as creating surrogate accounts to manipulate unspent balances,” according to the AGF, will be detected and punished. MDAs and officers who participate in such maneuvers will suffer relevant penalties.”
As a result, the OAGF stated that MDAs utilizing GIFMIS must input all 2023 transactions from their Sub-TSA Accounts into the system using the Journal Entry Functionality; the Government insisted on completing this activity by February 13th, 2024.
Furthermore, MDAs would be permitted access to monies for 2024 transactions only once the Treasury validates the accurate reporting of all Sub-TSA transactions into GIFMIS.
Furthermore, the OAGF has created a particular upload framework, which is available in the GIFMIS journal entry functionality sub-module. The AGF warned that all MDAs must adhere to this framework.
All MDAs have been asked to submit their Audited Trial Balance and Audited Financial Statements for the fiscal year ended December 31st, 2023, to the OAGF on or before February 28th, 2024, in accordance with International Public Sector Accounting Standards (IPSAS) and Financial Regulations.
According to the AGF, prompt submission of audited financial reports is “critical for the OAGF to proceed with opening accounts and releasing budgetary allocations for the 2024 fiscal year.”
Failure to comply with these criteria, according to the government, will have serious consequences.
According to the Presidential Directives and Financial Regulations, any MDA that fails to provide audited financial statements will have its fund allocation suspended immediately. A question will also be made to the non-compliant MDA’s Director or Head of Finance and Accounts.
The OAGF’s directive emphasizes the significance of accountability and transparency in MDA financial management.
Remember that former President Muhammadu Buhari signed the N21.83 trillion budget for 2023 into law in January of this year.