TSA Saves N4.2bn In Bank Charges Monthly – FG

By Ogbolu George

The Federal Government in a report on Sunday, said it has been able to save N4.7 billion monthly through the introduction of the Treasury Single Account (TSA) system.

TSA, a public accounting system that enables the Government manage its finances (revenue and payments) was launched in 2012, but failed to gain traction until President Muhammadu Buhari’s executive order in August 2015.

President Muhammadu Buhari had issued a directive on Aug 7, 2015 directing all Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) to shut down their accounts with Deposit Money Banks (DMBs) and transfer their balances to the Central Bank of Nigeria on or before 15 Sep. 2015.

The system has helped the federal government save such huge sum that was usually lost through banking charges, associated with indiscriminate government borrowing from DMBs.

The Treasury Single Account, has also resulted in the consolidation of more than 20,000 bank accounts previously spread across DMBs.

TSA system allows Government finance managers to regularly have a comprehensive overview of cash flows across the entire Government.

It also prevents a scenario were some MDAs would have spare cash, while other  MDAs would be compelled to borrow exorbitantly from DMB.