The 2024 Auditor General’s Report on the Social Services Sector has exposed a significant shortfall in the Ministry of Health’s capital expenditure, with “$12,268,485 or 40% of the revised budget” remaining unutilized for the financial year ending July 31, 2024.
The report, tabled in Parliament recently, highlights concern over the Ministry’s failure to execute planned infrastructure projects, raising questions about coordination and oversight.
According to the report, “the Appropriation Act and the Budget Estimates sets out details of the appropriations that Cabinet approves for spending by each agency.”
However, the Ministry’s Appropriation Statement revealed that “underutilisation of capital expenditure budget indicated that the planned capital works were not properly executed.”
The Auditor General recommends that “the Ministry should ensure that capital projects are well coordinated so that capital budget is utilised as intended.”