More Than A Health Walk! Ghana’s.....Power Challenges, The Real Issues And The Cacophony Of Noises

To be a Ghanaian today is puzzling because we are living in crucial times. Times characterized by little or no productivity because of unavailability of power, unfavourable living conditions due to a barrage of economic ills and anxiety about the uncertainty of our collective future! As my writer friend, Nana Awere Damoah will put it, Ghanaians are constantly reading from the book of NAHUM with their endless 'hmmm' sounds in silent anger.

Electricity in Ghana dates back to 1914 but it was Osagyefo Dr. Kwame Nkrumah and his building of the Akosombo Dam in the 1960s that gave Ghana electricity sufficiency. At this time, our beloved country couldn't use all the power that was generated from the dam and had to export power to neighbouring countries such as Togo, Benin, Burkina Faso and Cote D'Ivoire to get foreign exchange. The glorious past you may choose to call it.

The country over the years has registered increase in population, calling for the extension of electricity of new and emerging settlements, industrial complexes and commercial enclaves. Rural Ghana was mostly targeted and today, total electricity coverage in Ghana is 74%, with 60% of the coverage being rural.

The Ghanaian politician has always been shouting from the rooftops, beating his chest and trumpeting to all who cared to listen that he has further expanded rural electrification. Comically surprising, the politician did not picture the simple economic logic of demand and supply which posits that as you increase the demand side of the equation, the supply side must be equally attended to in order to ensure balance. The Ghanaian politician missed this very important picture.

No one government or administration is responsible for the mess that we are in. All governments after Osagyefo are culpable, for lacking the needed foresight to envision that a rise in population would necessitate increased power supply. They may have tried in one way or the other to shore up power, but trying is not good enough. The world does not reward people for just trying but rather accomplishing great feats.

The sad aspect of the entire power situation is that the political actors in the country are issuing blames and counter-blames. Whilst the incumbent government is blaming the current power situation on the previous NPP government, the biggest opposition party is also laying the blame at the doorstep of the ruling government.

According to 2014 figures, current power generation in Ghana is around 2100 Mega Watts of power. From hydro to thermal, the generation capacity is below what is needed by homes, offices and factories to survive. Load shedding has become the resultant effect of chronic leadership failure and the ordinary Ghanaian is seriously suffering. The Ghanaian can't get regular power to service his home, no power for his business and life has become very unbearable.

Productivity in the country is approaching zero if not zero. Factories are operating at low capacity and high cost, causing them to retrench or lay off labour. The cost of operating businesses has skyrocketed and individuals/households experience discomfort on a daily basis – no light to give illumination, they sleep in sweaty conditions and wake up very stressed, unable to contribute anything meaningful at work (that is if they even go to work and production is ongoing). Babies are dying in hospitals and skin diseases are becoming commonplace.

Armed robbers and prostitutes seem to be having a rather good time because their business thrives in darkness.

The critical question on the minds of discerning Ghanaians is 'what has been leadership response in the midst of this power crisis?' In my opinion, it lacked the appropriate swiftness, agility and serious-mindedness it deserves. Leadership failed in better managing our expectations and at most times lied to us. The administrators of the country were economical with the truth. For me, leadership is failing because the situation is speedily deteriorating instead of improving. Their heads are not in the game.

About a week ago, some well-meaning Ghanaians (I don't care about their party colours) went on a demonstration ('Won gbo' demonstration) to voice out their frustration at how the power crisis is being handled. Whilst the President intimated that he is motivated by the demonstration to provide rapid yet sustainable solutions to the problem, his subordinate, the Minister of Power reduced such an important event to a health walk, describing the demonstration as nothing but a health walk. No seriousness! And these are the people we are expecting to proffer solutions to our problem! God help us!

Where do our solutions lie? Exploring renewable energy options – solar, wind, biomass, waste-to-energy, tidal wave, etc. How do we attract the necessary investments? Let's look at domestic financing cum foreign investor participation through well-crafted and results-yielding proposals and effective negotiations. Swift action is key. The Nzema solar energy project with capacity of adding 155 MW to the grid is welcomed. Let's pray it yields results. Other projects of such nature must be speedily undertaken. It must be done right and fast, ultimately considering sustainability.

When I hear voices like that of Kwabena Donkor, PhD and other government communicators saying rehearsed scripts, it sounds nothing more than cacophonic noises in my ears. Fix the problem! Period!

Paul Edem Kuenyefu, is a Conference Speaker, Writer, Lay Preacher and Business Strategist. He is the author of 'TO THE ZENITH', a motivational piece. Email: pedem99 [at]gmail[dot]com