President John Dramani Mahama has hinted at the possibility of privatizing the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) as part of efforts to address inefficiencies in the country’s power distribution system.
Speaking during a meeting with a delegation from the World Bank on Wednesday, January 8, 2025, at his private office in Accra, Mahama stated that involving the private sector in managing ECG could help resolve key challenges, such as operational inefficiencies, financial mismanagement, and inadequate service delivery.
The President noted that privatization could form part of a broader strategy to modernize and enhance the performance of Ghana’s energy sector. Reflecting on Ghana’s participation in the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) Compact during his tenure as Vice President, he underscored the critical role of efficient energy distribution in achieving the nation’s development goals.
The former president assured stakeholders that any decision regarding ECG’s future would involve extensive consultations to balance the public interest with the need for improved performance.
“If we don’t fix the Electricity Company of Ghana, we will continue to have a major problem with our whole power value chain. So, going ahead with privatizing the last point of electricity distribution, bringing in private sector efficiency, is something that we want to take up again. We want to speak with the World Bank to get the expertise to be able to do that,” he explained.
President Mahama emphasized that the primary goal would be to ensure a sustainable energy sector capable of meeting the growing demands of Ghana’s economy while addressing longstanding inefficiencies in power distribution.
