State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs) have been urged by Hon. Thomas Nyarko Ampem, the Deputy Minister for Finance, to increase performance or face dissolution.
At a meeting with key stakeholders of State-Owned Enterprises and Specified Entities under the theme Leveraging Public Assets For Shared Prosperity, Mr. Ampem spoke on behalf of Finance Minister Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson.
He stated that the government’s renewed push for efficiency and accountability will no longer tolerate loss-making SOEs.
“They are now running out of excuses for non-performance,” he said, adding that the government has stabilised the economy and established favourable conditions for SOEs to perform.
He reaffirmed that underperforming businesses will be restructured, merged, privatised, or shut down under the continuing economic reset program, with a heavy emphasis on fiscal, governance, and performance discipline, citing previous pledges made by President John Dramani Mahama.
In addition to improved currency stability and a decrease in the Bank of Ghana’s monetary policy rate, the Deputy Minister emphasised improvements in Ghana’s macroeconomic indicators, such as a decrease in inflation from 23.8 percent in January 2025 to 3.3 percent in February 2026.
He pointed out that although these improvements offer a solid basis, SOEs now need to change from being financial liabilities to contributors to national income.
Mr. Ampem bemoaned the cost of inefficiencies in the industry, pointing to government expenditures of roughly $1.47 billion to address shortages in the energy sector as well as ongoing losses by the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG), which he claimed loses about 40% of power due to commercial and technical inefficiencies.
In the financial sector, he said that the government was working to convert COCOBOD’s GH¢5.8 billion legacy debt into equity and recapitalise the National Investment Bank (NIB) and Agricultural Development Bank (ADB) with more than GH¢1 billion in 2025.
The Deputy Minister stated that these initiatives should not go undetected since they present serious financial concerns.
Later, he praised three SOEs for their better dividend payment performance, pointing out that GPHA, Ghana Reinsurance Company Limited, and TDC Ghana Limited paid a total of GH¢329.34 million in dividends in 2025, a significant rise from GH¢28.7 million in 2024.
Despite the progress, he stated that compliance and performance consistency are still major issues.
Mr. Ampem also underlined the importance of strictly adhering to the State Interests and Governance Authority’s (SIGA) reporting and governance standards, cautioning that noncompliance will result in fines. He went on to say that management and boards will be held responsible for oversight and execution errors.
In closing, the Deputy Minister emphasised that public enterprises must provide value to Ghanaians or face dissolution and urged SOEs to work with discipline, efficiency, and openness.
Key government officials, including Vice President Her Excellency Jane Naana Opoku-Agyemang, attended the conference, which brought stakeholders together to talk about how public enterprises may be repositioned to serve national growth.
Source: newsthemegh.com