By Forum staff writer
The 2025 Sierra Leone Audit Report released by the Audit Service Sierra Leone has uncovered serious misappropriation and administrative failures at the Ministry of Basic and Senior Secondary Education (MBSSE), raising alarm over the misuse of public funds intended to support the education sector.
According to the Auditor General’s findings, the ministry’s payroll system showed significant weaknesses that allowed salaries to be paid to individuals who were no longer actively employed or even alive. In one documented case, a deceased staff member continued to receive a salary of NLe102,000 long after official death notifications were submitted to the ministry, with another deceased employee receiving NLe10,766 in continued payments. 
In addition to wrongful payments to the deceased, auditors identified 38 staff members who could not be physically verified, yet were still paid a total of NLe1,891,499 over the audit period. These payments were authorised despite the absence of genuine attendance records or confirmation of staff presence at their respective posts. The audit raised concerns that such payments may have been made to ghost workers, inflating payroll expenses and siphoning vital funds away from the sector. 
The challenges at MBSSE go beyond payroll irregularities. The audit also highlighted the non-functionality of the ministry’s Result Checker platform, an online tool designed for parents and students to access public examination results. The system has remained inoperative for more than two years, undermining transparency and access to crucial academic information. 
These irregularities form part of broader issues affecting Sierra Leone’s education sector finances. National reports indicate that over NLe44.8 million has been mismanaged across government departments, with payroll misconduct identified as one of the main drivers of financial loss. These findings reflect systemic weaknesses in human resources verification, documentation, and financial oversight. 
Civil society groups and accountability advocates have condemned the findings, urging government authorities to take decisive action against those responsible. The Centre for Accountability and Rule of Law (CARL), for example, has called for a thorough investigation into ghost workers and the removal of unverifiable names from payrolls, as well as recovery of all public funds lost through such irregularities. 
In response to the report, auditors have called on the ministry to implement stronger internal controls, including regular physical verification of staff, enhanced payroll reconciliation practices, and removal of records for individuals no longer eligible for payment. They also recommended recovery of funds paid in error and tighter oversight of human resource management procedures. 
Education sector stakeholders argue that these financial and administrative lapses not only undermine public trust but also deprive schools of much-needed resources for teaching, learning, and infrastructure development. With education recognised as a cornerstone of national development, immediate remedial action is expected from both the ministry and oversight bodies to strengthen accountability and protect public resources.
