Explain, with examples the differences between Specific and General Warrants in a Government contract acquired through Public Private Partnerships (PPPs). (4 marks)
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Warrants are issued by the Ministry of Finance to MDAs and MMDAs which represent the authority to commit government and spend from the national budget. Warrants are also issued at the MMDA level to support expenditure related to MMDA’s budget approved by the Local Assembly.
- Specific Warrant (SW) – As the name implies, Specific Warrants are issued for a specific item or project and cannot be used for a different expenditure item without prior approval by the Minister of Finance. Example, specific warrant issued for the construction office building cannot be used to purchase Vehicles and vice versa without prior approval by the Minister of Finance to that effect. SWs are normally issued for capital expenditure which are non-recurrent.
- General Warrant (GR) – GRs on the other hand are not tie to specific expenditure items but must be used for items provided for in the approved budget. GRs are issued to MDAs and MMDAs to meet their operational expenses. These expenses are recurrent in nature. For instance, a bulk general warrant could be issued to an MDA for Goods and Services expenditure and the MDA has the flexibility to use the warrant for operational expenses such as utilities, stationery, conferences, travel and transports, etc provided all these expenses were actually budgeted for…