May Day: 'It is not my intention to privatize ECG but we have to do something drastic to prevent total collapse' – President Mahama

President John Dramani Mahama has reassured Ghanaians that the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) will not be privatised under his leadership, emphasising his dedication to revitalising and strengthening the public sector.

This assurance comes amid growing public concern over the potential privatisation of ECG, the country’s primary power distributor, due to its worsening financial state and long-standing managerial challenges.

Speaking during the 2025 May Day celebration at the Black Star Square in Accra on Thursday, May 1, President Mahama addressed these concerns directly.

He proposed enhanced public-private partnerships as a more sustainable path to improve ECG’s operations, rather than handing it over entirely to private ownership.

He highlighted that ECG’s financial distress, marked by a staggering debt of 68 billion Ghana cedis stems from nearly a decade of mismanagement and weak governance.

“The ECG has been brought to its knees by a culture of poor governance over the last eight years, with a debt of 68 billion Ghana cedis and rising. If we do not do something drastic, our whole power sector will collapse. We can only bring down power tariffs if we improve the efficiency of the distribution of power,” he said.

Despite these challenges, Mahama made it clear that his government has no intention of selling off the institution. Instead, he aims to inject efficiency into the electricity distribution sector through strategic collaboration between the public and private sectors.