Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) in the governance and anti-corruption sector have called on the government to prioritise the passage and implementation of the Conduct of Public Officers (CoPO) Bill in the 2027 Budget Statement.

They also want the government to review the framework governing political party financing, strengthen anti-corruption institutions and whistleblower protection and improve transparency in public procurement and management of public investments. 

The CSOs made the call at a forum organised by the Economic Governance Platform and OXFAM in Accra last Tuesday to gather civil society input into the 2027 Budget Statement at the request of the Ministry of Finance.

Speaking on behalf of the CSOs, including the Ghana Anti-Corruption Coalition (GACC), the Ghana Centre for Democratic Development (CDD-Ghana) and the Ghana Integrity Initiative (GII), the Monitoring and Evaluation Officer of the GACC, Solomon Nyankah, said the CoPO bill must be passed without further delay.

The Conduct of Public Officers (CoPO) Bill was laid in Parliament on June 26, 2026, by the Attorney-General and Minister for Justice, Dr Dominic Ayine, after an earlier version considered in 2020 failed to become law, with Parliament’s Constitutional, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs Committee subsequently reporting on the bill in July.

The bill seeks to strengthen the framework for public officers’ conduct, particularly asset declaration and conflicts of interest, by improving transparency and verification and introducing stronger sanctions for non-compliance, with the current Open Government Partnership action plan targeting its passage and presidential assent in 2027.

Mr Nyankah said if the bill was not passed by the end of 2026, the 2027 Budget should contain a clear commitment to ensure its passage.

He also called for a review of the political financing framework, saying the lack of transparency over the sources of funds for political parties posed a corruption risk.

“We want to know the people behind the financing of our political parties,” he said.

The CSOs further called for adequate resources and operational autonomy for key anti-corruption institutions, as well as stronger mechanisms to protect whistleblowers.

They urged the government to improve coordination and information-sharing among anti-corruption, investigative, prosecutorial and audit institutions to make corruption investigations and sanctions more effective.

On public procurement, the groups called for open and competitive processes and strict compliance with the Public Procurement Act.

They also urged the government to fully integrate the Ghana Electronic Procurement System (GHANEPS) with the Ghana Integrated Financial Management Information System (GIFMIS) to provide real-time expenditure and procurement controls.

They said adequate training, internet access and logistics should also be provided to improve procurement management.

The CSOs further called for the timely publication of budget execution, procurement, public investment and audit information in accessible formats to enable citizens to exercise effective oversight.