Financial Management

The Financial Management Directorate is the main provider of financial management and accounting services to the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Mining. Its primary goals are the planning, execution, recording and reporting of financial transactions to facilitate the implementation of the programmes of the Ministry, and the procurement of goods and services.

The FAD provides accounting services to the major divisions of the ministry, which are fully supported by the budget and also reviews/monitors some aspects of the financial management of all other departments and agencies for which the ministry has portfolio responsibility.

The work of the Directorate is executed by four distinct units, namely, Management Accounts, Accounts Payable and Payroll, Financial Reporting and Procurement.

In addition to these main units, the functions of monitoring, financial analysis and financial systems are the responsibilities of the Financial Analyst and the Financial Systems Manager, who report directly to the Principal Finance Officer.

The Management Accounts Unit

The focus of the Management Accounts Unit (MAU), which is headed by the Director of Management Accounts, is the provision of management information to aid decision-making. It is the planning arm of the FAD. The primary output of the MAU is the annual budget estimates for the Ministry, its departments and agencies which receive funding from the Consolidated Fund.

The MAU also executes the cash management function of the Division, a major element of which is commitment planning and control.

The Accounts Payable and Payroll Unit (APPU)

The Accounts Payable and Payroll unit is primarily responsible for the timely, efficient and accurate payment of expenses and payrolls of the Ministry and the departments to which accounting services are provided.

The APPU is further divided into sub-units, viz.

• Payroll
• Payables - comprising Checking and Payments

The key duties of the APPU are:

• The monitoring of accounts payable
• Effecting payments to suppliers/creditors and grants and subventions to agencies of the Ministry.
• The collection, receipting and lodgement of funds.
• Administration of the payroll process for ministry and some project staff

The Financial Accounting & Reporting Unit (FARU)

Headed by the Director Final Accounts and Reporting, this unit is responsible for the maintenance of the financial accounts of the ministry and its departments and the preparation and submission of timely and accurate financial statements to the Auditor General and the Financial Secretary as well as to the activity centres of the Ministry.