On Thursday, 11th September 2025, the State Interests and Governance Authority (SIGA) welcomed a three-member delegation constituting the Independent Verification Agent (IVA) engaged by the Ministry of Finance under the World Bank’s Public Finance Management for Service Delivery (PFM4SD) Program.
The IVA’s mandate is to conduct an independent assessment of results against specific, pre-approved verification protocols and baselines. This process is essential for evaluating the extent of achievement of Disbursement Link Indicators (DLIs) and their corresponding Disbursement Link Results (DLRs). The focus of Thursday’s engagement was specifically on DLR 4.2: The publication of the annual State Ownership Report (SOR).
In his opening remarks, the Acting Director-General of SIGA, Prof. Michael Kpessa-Whyte, warmly welcomed the delegation. He went on to emphasize the significance of the exercise for promoting transparency and accountability in the governance of State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs), Joint Venture Companies (JVCs), and other Specified Entities (OSEs).
“The State Ownership Report is a cornerstone of the government’s reform agenda public enterprises sector, demonstrating our unwavering commitment to transparent and effective management of state assets,” he said.
The meeting also featured a presentation by the SOR Project Lead, Mr. Eric Bonsu Agyabeng. He detailed the project’s timelines, the extensive data collection processes, the report’s coverage of Specified Entities, and the strategic insights derived from the 2024 publication. His presentation provided a comprehensive roadmap of the diligent work undertaken by SIGA to meet the stringent programme targets.
The engagement concluded with a productive question-and-answer session, allowing the IVA team to seek further clarifications and delve deeper into the methodologies employed in compiling the landmark report.