OSP Board Chair Identifies Mobile Money, Procurement As Corruption Risk Areas in Telecom Sector
Board Chairperson of the Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP), Madam Linda Ofori-Kwafo, has identified mobile money transactions, procurement processes and third-party engagements as major areas requiring stronger integrity controls within Ghana's telecommunications industry.
She warned that the presence of financial resources, valuable assets and discretionary decision-making creates opportunities for misconduct if organisations fail to establish effective preventive measures.
Speaking on integrity risks in the telecommunications sector, Madam Ofori-Kwafo explained that corruption-related vulnerabilities could emerge in areas such as spectrum licensing, procurement of network equipment, fibre infrastructure, agent selection and mobile money operations.
She said mobile money platforms require particular attention because of the volume of financial transactions conducted through agents and digital accounts.
She identified suspicious transactions, customer verification, agent liquidity management and the selection of business partners as areas that must be subjected to appropriate controls.
Madam Ofori-Kwafo cautioned against situations where mobile money agents or other business partners offer personal benefits to employees in exchange for overlooking unusual account activities.
She advised that such offers must be rejected and the suspicious activities reported through established anti-money laundering procedures.
On procurement, she highlighted the risks associated with conflicts of interest, particularly where an evaluator has a family or personal relationship with a company bidding for a contract.
She said affected individuals must disclose such relationships and withdraw from the evaluation process where necessary to protect the fairness of the exercise.
She also presented a scenario in which an intermediary requests an urgent facilitation payment without an invoice.
Her recommended response was for the organisation to refuse the payment, verify the service being offered, document the request and escalate the matter through the appropriate reporting channels.
According to her, organisations must recognise that integrity breaches can begin with seemingly minor ethical compromises before developing into more serious corruption-related offences.
She therefore urged telecommunications companies to strengthen their risk assessment procedures and ensure that employees understand how to respond when confronted with improper requests.
Madam Ofori-Kwafo maintained that effective prevention, transparency and accountability remain essential to protecting the industry from financial and reputational damage.
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