CAGD suspends January salaries for 2,563 Ghanaian public employees

Nii Ayitey Brown 09:30 - 31 January 2026

The Controller and Accountant-General’s Department has suspended the January 2026 salaries of 2,563 public sector workers who failed to participate in Ghana’s nationwide headcount exercise. The move, recommended by the Auditor-General, forms part of efforts to eliminate ghost names and clean up the government payroll.

The Controller and Accountant-General’s Department (CAGD) has withheld the January 2026 salaries of 2,563 public sector workers after they failed to participate in a mandatory nation-wide headcount exercise conducted by the Ghana Audit Service in 2025, officials confirmed Friday.

In a press statement dated 30 January 2026, the department said while the majority of government workers on the national payroll have received their salaries, the affected individuals were excluded from payment following a recommendation from the Auditor-General for non-compliance with the verification exercise.

The headcount, part of a broader government effort to cleanse the public payroll and eliminate unverified or non-existent workers, required all civil servants to physically report to designated sites across Ministries, Departments, and Agencies.

Officials say those who did not report for verification will not have their pay reinstated until they complete necessary clearance procedures with the Ghana Audit Service.

"Affected staff who did not receive their January salary are kindly advised to contact the Ghana Audit Service immediately to complete the necessary clearance and verification process to enable the reinstatement of their salaries," the statement said.

This latest payroll purge follows an extensive nationwide audit and headcount exercise initiated in 2025 by the Auditor-General to address long-standing concerns about “ghost workers” and erroneous salary payments.

Earlier figures from government sources showed that thousands of names on the payroll were unverified or untraceable, prompting salary suspensions and removals in previous months. In mid-2025, the Finance Minister disclosed that over 14,000 workers could not be identified, and more than 53,000 separated staff were found still drawing government pay.

The CAGD has emphasised that its decision is grounded in Ghana’s Public Financial Management laws, asserting its commitment to transparency, accountability and timely payment of legitimate payroll obligations.

The Auditor-General’s audit is part of broader reforms aiming to strengthen financial oversight and reassure the public that taxpayer funds are protected against leakages.

Challenges from “ghost names” and payroll discrepancies have historically undermined confidence in government expenditure, prompting repeated audits and verification exercises.

Affected employees have been urged to expedite the verification process with audit authorities to ensure their salaries are reinstated, while government officials say continued cooperation is vital to the integrity of the public payroll system.

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