According to the latest Auditor General’s report on Malawi Government accounts, the Ministry of Health and Population paid K645 million in foreign referral medical bills.

Foreign referrals are patients who are sent abroad for expert treatment which is not found in Malawi, as the process requires proper accounting records to support all financial and related transactions. According to Treasury Instructions 2004 Section 5.15.1, full supporting documents must be retained and filed in such a way that they are easily and readily accessible. The audit has found that these requirements were not followed, leaving the large sum untraced.

The report says an inspection of payment vouchers revealed that payments amounting to K645,849,971.57 in relation to funds transfers made for medical referral cases abroad were not supported by liquidation documents. “….it is difficult to ascertain whether the expenditures were made for the intended purpose,” part of the report reads.