Gambian Envoy Hails TSA Implementation, Describes Nigeria as Reference Point *Transaction volume hits N30tn

The Director in charge of the Treasury Single Account (TSA) in the Office of the Accountant General of the Federation (OAGF), Mr.  Sylva Okolieaboh, on Monday disclosed that the implementation of the TSA policy had pooled about N30 trillion transactions, with about N10 trillion passing through the account in terms of cash remittance and withdrawals.

This is as the Accountant General of The Gambia, Mr. Momodou Lamin Nah, said Nigeria is currently a global reference point in the successful implementation of TSA.

Okolieaboh gave the transaction figure during a visit by a delegation from The Gambia who are in the country on a European Union-funded tour to understudy the successful implementation of TSA in the country.

The delegation had paid courtesy visits separately to the Minister of Finance, Zainab Ahmed and the Accountant General of the Federation (AGF), Mr.  Ahmed Idris, preparatory to the commencement of a two-week tour in the country.

However, the Okolieaboh said: “If you are looking at transactions in terms of turnover, we should be talking of about N20 trillion, N30 trillion. Remember money is in and out.”

But, he would not disclose the current value of the TSA.

On whether the implementation of TSA had given rise to other forms of corrupt practices within the processes, he said: “I am not aware that corruption is going in leaps and bounds. But the truth is that there is a wrong public expectation about the TSA.

“If you listened to the statements, TSA is meant to consolidate bank accounts to give you better cash management abilities.

“But by so doing also, to help you to track what is going on and the truth is that right now that tracking is going on: there is no transactions that go on in the MDAs that we don't know.

“Now,  if corruption has not died,  the question is what will it have been like, if there was no TSA?”

However, Ahmed, while welcoming the delegates noted that the presence of government officials from The Gambia to study successful TSA implementation in Nigeria was a reaffirmation of the fact that what the country had done with the TSA was a good example.  
According to her: “TSA has helped us enforce our liquidity management. We have been able to track transactions that are coming in or going out. And every agency of government has an account in the TSA. Because the funds are pooled, it has helped us to enhance liquidity management,” the Minister said. She urged the delegation to learn from the Nigerian experience and improve on management of their nation’s funds.