The Energy Minister Designate, John Abdulai Jinapor, on Monday, January 13, 2025, hinted at a possible privatization of the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) by the new Mahama government in a bid to revive and revamp the ailing state company.
The member of Parliament for the Yapei-Kusawgu constituency made this intention known during his vetting with the appointment committee of Parliament. He revealed that a seven-member committee that’ll be tasked to assess the viability of the private sector involvement in managing ECG.
“We believe there should be private sector participation,” Jinapor stated during the vetting. He stressed that privatization, or some form of private-sector involvement, could provide the resources, expertise, and efficiency required to turn around ECG’s fortunes and enhance electricity supply across the country,” he said.
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According to the Minister Designate, there’s a conscious effort to approach this in a non-partisan way with an emphasis on neutrality as far as the composition of the committee is concerned.
“We will stay off as politicians and let them develop a framework in a transparent, open, and frank manner. Once we get the buy-in of Ghanaians, we can set standards using a Request for Proposal (RFP) or competitive tender process,” he added.
The call for the privatization of ECG has been a longstanding public discourse within and outside the energy community in the country. This has become necessary due to the incessant loss, inefficiencies, and indebtedness of ECG.
For instance, in April of 2024 during the commissioning of a 430-kilometre natural gas pipeline by Genser Energy, the Asantehene Otumfour Osei Tutu commented on the conversation – calling for the privatization of power distributing companies to ensure rapid power distribution and growth.
While many have argued for privatization, others have also attributed ECG’s lack of growth to ineptitude in leadership and have raised calls to address such.
Private legal practitioner and political commentator, Martin Kpebu has raised concerns about the leadership of ECG. According to him, the government has to critically assess the competence and moral cadence of people appointed to head the institutions.