MFWA drags Ghana Highway Authority to RTI Commission over refusal to release Big Push contracts

The Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA) has petitioned the Right to Information (RTI) Commission over the refusal of the Ghana Highway Authority (GHA) to provide information requested under the Right to Information Act, 2019 (Act 989).

The petition follows the Authority’s failure to release copies of road contracts awarded under the government’s flagship Big Push Initiative despite assurances that the information would be provided.

On February 9, 2026, the Manager for the Independent Journalism Project at the MFWA, Kwaku Krobea Asante, submitted an RTI request to the Ghana Highway Authority seeking information related to contracts awarded under the initiative. The application included requests for a full list of road contracts awarded under the Big Push Initiative, the procurement methods used in awarding the contracts, and a copy of all contracts awarded under the programme.

In a response dated February 23, 2026, and signed by the Acting Chief Executive Officer of the Authority, Mallam Issah Ishak, the GHA released some of the requested information, including some details on the contracts and procurement methods used.

However, the Authority failed to provide copies of the contracts.

In the letter, the Acting CEO assured the MFWA that the outstanding information would be supplied within 15 working days.

“We will furnish you with request numbered 5 within 15 working days as compilation is still ongoing,” the letter stated.

Nearly six months after that assurance, the Authority has yet to release the documents.

As of July 31, 2026, despite several follow-ups and engagements by the MFWA, the Ghana Highway Authority had not provided the copy of the contracts.

The MFWA has consequently petitioned the Executive Secretary of the RTI Commission to intervene and compel the Authority to disclose the requested information in accordance with the RTI Act.

The Foundation argues that access to the contracts is essential for public scrutiny of the Big Push Initiative, a major government infrastructure programme that involves the expenditure of billions of cedis of public funds.

The GHA’s refusal to release the copy of the Big Push contracts adds to previous records of public institutions denying the MFWA’s RTI requests.

In July, The Fourth Estate appealed to the Finance Minister after the RTI officer of the ministry refused to release information about the ministry’s budgetary allocation disbursement.

In the same month, The Fourth Estate petitioned the RTI Commission over the Public Procurement Authority’s refusal to release information regarding road contract procurement approval requests that the Authority had received from the Ghana Highway Authority, the Department of Urban Roads, and the Department of Feeder Roads since January 2025.

In May 2025, The Fourth Estate dragged Parliament to the RTI Commission after the legislature failed to release information on expenditure on foreign medical travels of the Speaker. 

Similarly, in December 2025, The Fourth Estate took the Youth Employment Agency (YEA) to the RTI Commission. This was after YEA refused to provide a list of contracts the Agency had signed with Zoomlion Company Limited from 2017 to 2024. Others include the Commission on Human Right and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ) and the Ghana Police.

Background

The Fourth Estate’s quest for copies of the contracts from the Ghana Highway Authority (GHA) follows its latest investigation, which revealed how the Ministry of Roads and Highways and its agencies, including the GHA, had resorted mainly to the award of contracts under the Big Push programme through single-sourcing.

The investigation revealed that out of 107 road contracts awarded under the Big Push programme, 81 were singled-sourced, and the remaining 26 were awarded on a restricted tendering basis, with none awarded under competitive tendering.

The story also showed a glaring contrast between the promises and pledges made by President Mahama and other key officials of the governing National Democratic Congress (NDC) when they were in opposition about limiting the abuse of single-sourcing and what’s currently happening under their supervision in government.

After the story, President Mahama requested The Fourth Estate to submit a full report on the matter to his office. He also directed the Minister for Roads and Highways, Kwame Governs Agbodza, to respond to the allegations contained in the report.