By Yussif Ibrahim

Kumasi, Feb. 03, GNA – Ahead of the celebration of the Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) Week, the Judicial Service of Ghana has lined up series of engagements with the business community in Kumasi.

The initiative dubbed, “Pre-ADR Week” seeks to sensitise potential users of court processes in settling disputes to embrace ADR as an option for expeditious resolution of cases.

This year’s ADR Week celebration scheduled for March 17 – 21 is on the theme, “Building the Pillars of Justice through Commercial Justice ADR”.

The Pre-ADR Week engagements, which focuses on commercial cases this year, therefore, seeks to draw the attention of businesses to the advantages of utilising ADR for resolution of disputes ahead of the main event.

Since 2005 when ADR was introduced into the justice delivery system 38,447 cases out of 88,451cases, representing 43 per cent have successfully been resolved.

Justice Mrs. Angelina Mensah-Homiah, a Justice of the Court of Appeal with oversight responsibility for ADR, at a media briefing ahead of an engagement with Kuapa Kokoo Cooperative Farmers and Marketing Union Limited on Monday, emphasised the benefits of adjudication of cases through ADR.

She said resolving cases through means than litigation brings finality to such cases faster than going through the traditional processes in courts, which are burdened with so many cases.

Resolution of cases through ADR apart from ensuring expeditious conclusion, also saves the parties involved time and money, according to Justice Mensah-Homiah.

“Having commercial cases in court for years hurts businesses and at the end of the day it impacts negatively on economic stability”, she noted.

She added, “If people in the business community get to know that this option either than litigation is available for free by the Judicial Service, I believe they will readily embrace and take advantage of it.”

Justice Hannah Taylor, Supervising High Court Judge for Ashanti Region, said considering the tall list of cases before the courts, opting for ADR was the way to go to ease the pressure on Presiding Judges.

She reiterated that if parties adopt ADR in resolving disputes, it saved them time and money, which were vital resources being wasted on cases that could be resolved faster at virtually no cost.

GNA

The Africa Sustainable Energy Centre (ASEC) has applauded government for establishing a seven-member committee to oversee the privatisation of the commercial aspect of the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG).

However, ASEC cautions that the current debate has focused solely on private sector participation in revenue mobilisation, neglecting the broader challenges facing the state-run power distributor. As a result, it has put forward key recommendations to address these issues.

The think tank asserts that “the current state of the ECG requires more than assistance in collecting money owed by customers.

“We need private sector capital and expertise in critical terms to recoup all revenues and achieve operational excellence before transitioning the ECG,” ASEC’s Director of Research and Innovation, Dr. Elvis Twumasi, stated.

ASEC’s recommendations span several critical areas, such as the importance of deploying private sector capital and technical expertise in key operational upgrades.

This includes the installation of smart metres for accurate and real-time billing, the upgrading of customer management systems with advanced billing software and mobile payment platforms, and the implementation of robust debt recovery mechanisms coupled with innovative anti-theft technologies.

Additionally, ASEC highlights the necessity of modernising ECG’s infrastructure, such as upgrading distribution networks to reduce technical losses. These measures, ASEC argues, are essential for ensuring that all revenues due ECG are accurately captured and collected, ultimately enabling the company to function more like a commercially viable entity while delivering reliable electricity.

According to ASEC’s Director of Research and Innovation, Dr. Elvis Twumasi, “The private sector can unlock operational efficiencies, allowing ECG to operate more like a commercially viable entity while ensuring a sustained electricity supply”.

A well-estimated concession period

The think tank believes the design of a carefully structured concession period, considering variables such as capital recovery timelines, revenue improvement milestones and debt recovery projections, will ensure that the private sector achieves its investment objectives while Ghana secures long-term benefits from a revitalised ECG.

The committee is advised to “save the nation by conducting a thorough analysis” that covers variables including revenue improvement milestones, debt recovery projections, tariff adjustment and affordability.

Other critical areas are regulatory and policy adjustments, market stability, capacity building and consumer sentiment and adaptation.

Clear regulatory roadmap and stakeholder engagement

Dr. Twumasi also recommends that the committee clearly define the scope of privatisation, establish transparent procurement processes, and empower the Public Utilities Regulatory Commission (PURC) to oversee tariff adjustments and protect consumer interests.

“To ensure the successful privatisation of the commercial aspect, there must be a transparent regulatory framework and robust stakeholder engagement strategy. This will not only attract credible private sector partners but also build public trust and improve revenue mobilisation,” ASEC noted.

In addition, clearly defined roles for the Energy Commission, the Ministry of Energy and ECG’s Board are crucial, he said.

“Effective stakeholder engagement – involving public awareness campaigns, early employee and union engagement, and customer-centric measures – is essential to foster public trust and improve revenue mobilisation.”

Development of performance-based concession agreements (PBCAs)

ASEC proposes that the committee design a PBCA that ties financial rewards to measurable performance indicators to the private sector. This, they believe, will ensure that Ghana achieves improved operational efficiency while maintaining long-term ownership of strategic assets.

Doing this will also drive efficiency, accountability and innovation, ensuring that service providers meet clearly defined targets. By aligning financial incentives with performance, ASEC said the country can enhance operational efficiency while safeguarding long-term ownership of its strategic assets.

As part of this proposal, the committee is expected to outline key elements of the PBCA, including performance metrics, monitoring mechanisms, and accountability structures. These guidelines will establish a transparent and results-driven system, fostering a partnership between the public and private sectors that prioritises sustainable growth and national interests.

Regionalised commercial aspect privatisation

ASEC further advocated a regionalised approach to the privatisation of ECG’s commercial operations. In its view, forming regional clusters (Northern, Southern and Middle Belt), the committee can tailor solutions to local challenges, promote competitive benchmarking, enhance risk management and pilot incremental roll-outs.

“This is because regional private operators can better manage local risks – such as theft and cultural barriers to payment that may overwhelm a single private sector – to prevent numerous concessions in order to pave the way for a beautiful electricity market model,” the think tank explained.

ASEC’s analysis shows that this approach aligns with international practices, will ensure the tailored solutions for regional challenges, competitive benchmarking across regions, enhanced risk management, possible incremental and flexible roll-out as well as stakeholder engagement at regional levels.

The recommendations from the ASEC offer a scalable, flexible strategy for transforming ECG into a modern utility provider that supports the nation’s industrialisation and economic growth agenda.

The think tank concluded by urging the committee to conduct thorough analyses and incorporate these critical variables into its strategic framework.

Civil works on three of the Agenda 111 health projects commissioned under Akufo-Addo are yet to be completed.

Though facilities at Trede, Oforikrom and Ahanta West Districts were commissioned two days before the 2024 elections, there were no plans in place for handing over to the Ghana Health Service for operationalisation.

Health Minister, Kwabena Mintah Akandoh says civil works for all the facilities are below ninety-five percent complete.

“In terms of the civil works, none of the commissioned facilities is above ninety five percent and I am being very charitable”, he said.

The Health Minister made this statement after touring the two commissioned Agenda 111 facilities in the Ashanti Region.

According to the Health Minister, only 400 million dollars of the 1.7 billion dollars needed for the 111 health facilities was released for construction.

By the figures, over a billion dollars will be needed for the completion of all facilities under construction.
“We need not less than 1.4 billion dollars to be able to finish the projects, these are the facts”, Mr. Akandoh explains.

A visit to the Oforikrom and Atwima Nwabiagya facilities, commissioned by the former President showed both facilities are not operational.

Road networks leading to both sites untarred, dusty and bumpy.

At the Trede facility, part of the roads within the hospital are untarred. Though civil works are advanced, there is much to be done in both facilities.

At Trede, some beds and a few equipment that were moved into the hospital continue to gather dust due to inactivity.

Mr. Akandoh explains, “Per my inspection, the civil works are not complete. Labs are incomplete, not all equipment have been delivered so we don’t have health workers here as expected.”

“I came with the Director General of the Ghana Health Service and the Regional Director, they tell me there is no action plan for recruitment or staffing for these facilities”, he added.

According to the Minister, though there are no dedicated source of funding for the project, the government is willing to complete the projects following submission of a blueprint.

DISCLAIMER: The Views, Comments, Opinions, Contributions and Statements made by Readers and Contributors on this platform do not necessarily represent the views or policy of Multimedia Group Limited.

Ghana’s newly appointed central bank governor has suspended the country’s gold-for-oil programme, expressing confidence in the stability of the cedi after last year’s volatility.

“We intend to maintain an appropriate monetary policy stance,” Bank of Ghana Governor Johnson Asiama stated in an interview with Bloomberg on Friday. Alongside fiscal discipline under President John Mahama’s administration, he asserted that such measures “should help us maintain stability in the foreign exchange markets.”

Interest rates currently stand at 27 per cent, while inflation eased to 23.5 per cent in January. Asiama believes that improved monetary and fiscal policy coordination will help curb inflationary pressures as the nation moves beyond the economic turmoil caused by its 2022 debt default. Ghana, Africa’s largest gold producer, secured a $3 billion bailout from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and underwent a debt restructuring process following its default.

Having depreciated by 19 per cent against the US dollar in 2023, the cedi is expected to avoid the “extreme volatilities” experienced in recent months, according to Asiama.

Gold-for-Oil Programme suspended

The previous government, which Mahama convincingly defeated in the December elections, introduced the gold-for-oil programme as a strategy to counter currency fluctuations. Under this scheme, the central bank purchased gold in local currency and used it to barter or buy oil.

However, the initiative has been put on hold due to financial setbacks. “We have had to incur some losses on that,” Asiama admitted, declining to disclose specifics. “So we’ve put some suspension” on the trade, he said.

Ghana’s oil import bill amounted to $4.5 billion in 2024. By September of that year, the central bank had acquired 65.4 tonnes of gold, with 30.5 tonnes added to its foreign reserves by year-end. Moving forward, Asiama suggested that the central bank might withdraw from gold procurement, transferring responsibilities to a soon-to-be-established Gold Board.

Asiama, who was sworn into office by Mahama on 25 February, is also committed to addressing financial losses at the central bank. The institution recorded a record overspending of 60.9 billion cedis ($3.9 billion) in 2022 due to loan write-downs needed to secure the IMF bailout.

“I can tell you for sure that for this year we’ll not see a loss occurring,” Asiama asserted. “We are taking the right measures to control operational costs.”

President John Dramani Mahama is Ghana’s president

The Youth Bridge Foundation (YBF) has called on President John Dramani Mahama to include the Minister of Youth Development and Empowerment, George Opare Addo, in his Cabinet.

According to the group, Opare Addo represents a significant portion of the youth population in Ghana, and his exclusion from the cabinet does not align with the aspirations of young people.

They further argued that even if the minister lacks experience, his inclusion in the Cabinet would provide him the opportunity to learn from senior colleagues and gain valuable experience, ultimately advancing the goal of youth inclusion in governance.

“We are concerned about the absence of the Minister of Youth Development and Empowerment at the cabinet level, given that youth issues affect over 38% of the voter population. During the presidential dialogue on GTV, His Excellency John Dramani Mahama committed to ensuring youth inclusion and participation in governance.

“We are convinced that if given the opportunity, the Minister of Youth Development and Empowerment could understudy experienced ministers, gain institutional knowledge, bring youth-related concerns to the forefront, and contribute innovative solutions to national issues,” the group stated in a press release.

The YBF further urged President Mahama to consider including Opare Addo in his cabinet during any future reshuffle.

“We, therefore, urge H.E. the President to consider the inclusion of the Minister for Youth Development and Empowerment in a possible future cabinet reshuffle. This will enable him to effectively represent and defend youth aspirations at the cabinet level while gaining insight from experienced cabinet members to enhance youth participation in governance,” the statement added.

This call comes after President Mahama announced his cabinet, which excluded Ministers of State, leaving Opare Addo off the final list.

Watch the latest episode of TWI news below:

SB/MA

Dr. Johnson Asiama, BoG Governor

The Governor of the Bank of Ghana, Dr. Johnson Asiama, has noted that the government’s soon-to-be-established Gold Board will handle Ghana’s gold purchases.

According to him, the Central Bank will relinquish its role of purchasing gold to the board when it is established.

Speaking in an interview with Bloomberg, Dr. Asiama said, “The central bank may remove itself from the programme to purchase bullion and hand the role to a soon-to-be-established Gold Board.”

The Gold Board is anticipated to create a structured framework for managing the country’s gold resources.

The board will improve transparency, regulate transactions, and optimise gold purchases for national reserves.

In the same interview, Dr. Asiama stated that the gold-for-oil initiative has been put on hold due to unspecified policy and operational challenges.

However, he expressed optimism that the cedi would stabilize following last year’s volatility.

“We intend to maintain an appropriate monetary policy stance. Together with commitments to fiscal discipline under the administration of President John Mahama, this should help us maintain stability in the foreign exchange markets,” he told Bloomberg on Friday, February 28, 2025.

Dr. Asiama further revealed that the program had incurred some losses, prompting its suspension.

“We have had to incur some losses on that, so we have put some suspension on the trade,” he stated.

SSD/MA

Watch the latest episode of Health Focus below