Outgoing United States Ambassador to Ghana, Virginia Palmer, has voiced her serious concerns about the Electricity Company of Ghana’s (ECG) financial condition, saying it is worse than previously thought.
Ambassador Palmer cautioned that the ECG’s continuous losses represent a serious threat to Ghana’s economic stability and necessitate immediate reform in an interview that has not yet been broadcast on Channel One TV’s The Point of View with Bernard Avle.
“The ECG is bleeding, exchequer, and it’s bleeding more than we thought,” she said. “When the Minister of Finance, Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson, spoke at the Economic Dialogue, he said $2.2 million a year, which is essentially at the scale of the IMF programme. There are losses either at the electricity poles or in the counting rooms, and they are enormous.”
Palmer’s remarks are in line with growing demands for efficiency and openness in Ghana’s electricity distribution industry.
Her comments also draw attention to the wider ramifications of ECG’s financial difficulties, particularly in light of Ghana’s current International Monetary Fund (IMF) program.
Technical and commercial losses, whether due to malfunctioning equipment or revenue leaks, are jeopardising the nation’s financial stability and impeding attempts to provide dependable electricity, she said.
Ambassador Palmer’s candid analysis joins an increasing number of stakeholders calling for structural changes to save ECG and shield the economy from more stress.
She has worked closely with Ghana on energy, governance, and economic issues during her tenure, which comes to an end as requests for more accountability and results-oriented leadership in the utility industry mount.
NKONKONSA.com
