Saglemi project vindicates PPP model, should be mainstreamed for housing delivery – Kojo Oppong-Nkrumah 

Mr Kojo Oppong Nkrumah, New Patriotic Party (NPP) Member of Parliament for Ofoase/Ayirebi, says the current Government's decision to continue with the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) model for the Saglemi Housing Project vindicates the approach and underscores the need to mainstream it in addressing Ghana's housing deficit.

Speaking in an interview with a section of the media at Parliament House on Sunday, Mr Oppong Nkrumah, a former Minister of Works and Housing, said after four years of investigations and prosecutions related to the Saglemi project, the major challenge remained raising between 60 million and 100 million US dollars to revive the stalled project.

He explained that due to difficulties in securing public funds, the previous NPP administration adopted a Private Sector Participation (PSP) model under which a private partner would provide the capital and expertise needed to complete the project in phases.

“Under the framework, the completed houses would be sold via mortgage to offtakers, allowing both government to retrieve its equity plus margin and the private partner to retrieve its investment plus margin, without additional burden on the taxpayer,” he said.

Mr Oppong Nkrumah said the transaction was concluded within six to nine months between April and December 2024 with support from one of the world's leading accounting firms, which served as transaction advisor to ensure speed and compliance with international standards.

He noted that although the process was criticised by the then opposition, which alleged that the project had been sold to political cronies, the transaction was transparent and adhered to international best practices.

The former Minister said he was pleased that the current administration had adopted the same model and was preparing to deliver the first 700 housing units, with an additional 2,000 units planned.

“That is testament to the fact that the PSP model works. We need to mainstream it instead of always trying to wait for taxpayers’ money or sovereign debt before we do these projects,” he said.

Mr Oppong Nkrumah observed that several affordable housing projects initiated during the administration of former President John Agyekum Kufuor in Koforidua and parts of the Ashanti Region remained uncompleted and could benefit from the same approach.

On affordability, he stressed that the pricing mechanism agreed between Government and the private operator was critical and must be maintained to ensure that ordinary Ghanaians could acquire the houses through an open bidding and mortgage system on a public portal.

He further disclosed that a comprehensive framework for delivering affordable housing through public-private partnerships had been developed and left at the Ministry.

“The framework involves government providing support to make it cheaper for the more efficient private sector to build at lower cost and sell at lower prices.

Linking the issue to policy, Mr Oppong Nkrumah said the NPP’s 2024 manifesto, led by Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, clearly outlined plans to mainstream private sector participation in the delivery of public goods and services without overburdening taxpayers.

He said that if the current administration did not fully implement the framework within its remaining tenure, a future NPP administration would prioritise it to stimulate construction activity, create jobs and expand home ownership opportunities.

Mr Oppong Nkrumah also urged political actors to support beneficial national initiatives irrespective of which administration introduced them.

“This thing where when your opponent is doing something even if it is good you deliberately smear it with allegations that are unfounded — this is a clear lesson that must be learned. If a model is rolled out and it’s good for Ghana, it’s good for Ghana. Let’s continue with it and let’s give credit where credit is due,” he said.

The former Minister called for reforms to accelerate PPP approval processes, noting that pre-feasibility and feasibility approvals at the Public Investment Division of the Ministry of Finance could take up to a year.

He said strengthening institutional capacity within the public service was essential to delivering more infrastructure through partnerships without imposing additional burdens on taxpayers.

GNA