Former Minister for Public Enterprises, Joseph Cudjoe, has challenged Finance Minister Dr. Ato Forson’s claim that most State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs) are struggling financially .
During the National Economic Dialogue, Dr. Forson painted a grim picture of the financial health of SOEs, stating that nearly all were facing significant operational and financial risks.
He cited entities like the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) and the Agricultural Development Bank (ADB) as examples of SOEs in financial distress.
In response, Mr. Cudjoe dismissed these claims, asserting that they were inaccurate.
He pointed out that out of 53 SOEs, 39 recorded profits in 2023 based on their audited accounts, while five improved their performance by reducing losses compared to the previous year.
He questioned why the Finance Minister would describe the majority as being in financial trouble when, under a previous administration, many of these SOEs had not even been preparing accounts.
Mr. Cudjoe further explained that Ghana’s public enterprises include 53 SOEs, which operate on a commercial basis, and 75 Other State Entities (OSEs) that serve as regulators, such as the Food and Drugs Authority, the Petroleum Commission, the National Petroleum Authority, and the Ghana Revenue Authority.
Additionally, there are 47 Joint Venture Companies (JVCs), which involve government partnerships with private investors. These JVCs, which include entities like GOIL, GCB Bank, SIC Insurance, Newmont, and Goldfields, are largely profitable.
He urged the Finance Minister to provide a more accurate picture of the situation, emphasizing that only a few SOEs are struggling financially, rather than the majority.
He also highlighted ongoing efforts to improve the profitability of certain SOEs, including the Tema Oil Refinery (TOR), COCOBOD, ECG, Ghana Water Company, and the Produce Buying Company (PBC).
READ FULL STATEMENT BELOW
THE FINANCE MINISTER LIED THAT MOST SOEs ARE IN RED:
Joseph Cudjoe Replies
There are 53 SOEs. 39 reported profits in 2023, per their audited accounts. 5 improved in performance from 2022 to 2023 by reducing losses. Why would the Finance Minister have the guts to say MOST of the SOEs were in red? Meanwhile, during their time, most of these SOEs were not even preparing accounts at all.
It is worth noting that Ghana has 175 public enterprises on its assets register. 53 are State Owned Enterprises (SOEs) which are commercial per their mandates), 75 Other States Entities (OSEs). These are regulators like Food and Drugs Authority, Petroleum Commission, National Petroleum Authority, GPHA, DVLA, GRA, etc. These 75 OSEs are distinct from the 53 SOEs which are expected to make profit.
Finally there are 47 Joint Venture Companies (JVCs), which are co-shared commercial-investments by government with private investors. Examples include GOIl, GCB Bank, SIC Insurance, Newmont, Goldfields, etc, etc. This category is largely profitable
States Interest and Governance Authority (SIGA), an initiative by Akufo Addo’s government, has been responsible for bringing all these 175 public investments into a sharp focus so that their performances can be constantly monitored. Today, we have data to use to manage these enterprises and their performances are even ranked in a Public Enterprises League Table (PELT).
The Finance Minister should note that there is an ongoing program to bring the troublesome SOEs to profitability. These troublesome ones include TOR, COCOBOD, ECG, Ghana Water, PBC, etc. The current Finance minister should stop peddling lies that “most” are in red because it’s rather few that are in red. Most rather prepared accounts, got them audited and they reported profits in 2023.
There has been constant performance improvements in these public enterprises since 2017 as opposed to the period before 2017 when companies like BOST (notorious for contaminated fuels during NDC’s time) and Ghana Publishing Company Limited were not even preparing accounts at all.
Hon Joseph Cudjoe
Fmr Minister, Public Enterprises
