USA welcomes ECG’s privatization

• Posted on May 9, 2015May 9, 2015
• by Nana Kwesi Coomson
• Comment

THE government of the United States of America (USA) has welcomed government’s decision to privatise some operations of the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) to make it more efficient.

The US Envoy to Ghana, Mr Gene Cretz described the decision as a key milestone to facilitate early implementation of projects under the Compact II of the Millennium Challenge Account (MCA).

ECG’s privatization is part of conditions that the country should meet before it starts accessing the $500 million Millennium Challenge Compact Funds from the US government.

The Public Utility Workers Union and Public Services Workers Union have strongly kicked against the privatization.

But in a statement issued in Accra, Gene A. Cretz remarked: “The United States welcomes the decision of the Government of Ghana to pursue private sector participation through a concession of ECG.”

He made reference to an announcement on April 30th  at the Millennium Development Authority Procurement workshop, where Deputy Minister of Power John Abdulai Jinapor noted the need for Ghana to take decisions that will “transform the power sector.”

The workshop was a forum on Business and Procurement Opportunities under Compact II and was sponsored by the Millennium Development Authority and several business organizations in Ghana.

The Ambassador was pleased with the years of due diligence and deliberation required to make this decision and stressed “this will be a competitive selection process to determine who will direct activities of transformation of ECG.  The fact that a decision has been made is a key milestone for moving the Compact forward toward implementation.”

-The Finder