Dr. Mohammed Amin Adam
During the ongoing International Monetary Fund (IMF)/World Bank Group (WBG) 2024 Spring Meetings in Washington, USA, Dr. Mohammed Amin Adam, Ghana's Finance Minister, provided assurance to both local and foreign investors regarding the country's energy sector.
Dr. Adam emphasized that Ghana had taken decisive steps to address challenges in the energy sector, aiming to create an environment where investors could achieve more profitable returns on their investments.
At a fireside chat event themed "Energising Africa: What will it take to accelerate access and improve lives," Dr. Adam outlined Ghana's commitment to overcoming the US$1.9 billion energy sector financing gap, representing about two per cent of the country's Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
Acknowledging intermittent power outages across the nation, Dr. Adam assured investors of the government's resolve to tackle electricity challenges while implementing reforms for financial sustainability.
Key reforms highlighted by the Finance Minister included the Energy Sector Recovery Programme, renegotiation of Independent Power Producers (IPPs) agreements to reduce generation costs, and the implementation of a quarterly tariff adjustment review to account for inflation and exchange rate depreciation.
Moreover, Dr. Adam emphasized the transition from unsolicited projects to competitive procurement for energy acquisition, ensuring increased capacity at lower costs.
Regarding universal electricity access, Ghana has achieved 88.85 per cent and aims to reach 90 per cent by the end of 2024. Efforts are focused on connecting off-grid and island communities through mini-grids and standardized meter procurement.
The government's partnership with the World Bank under a Programme-for-Result scheme will soon facilitate the procurement of approximately one million meters, aimed at improving revenue collection and operational efficiency along the energy sector value chain.