By Benjamin A. Commey
Accra, Oct 13, GNA – Mr Kabral Blay Amihere, Board Chair of the Ghana Grid Company Limited (GRIDCO), has raised concern about Government’s interference in the operations of State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs) and Other Specialised Entities (OSEs).
According to him, such interferences were to blame for the failure of the entities to fully deliver on their mandate.
Mr Amihere said this when delivering a speech as a Guest Speaker at the 2nd Public Enterprises League Table (PELT) Awards to honour performing SOEs and OSEs, in Accra.
The PELT award was launched in April 2022 to engender competition among SOEs by enhancing efficiency, productivity and the profitability of the public entities.
It is a collaboration among the Ministries of Public Enterprises, Finance and the State Interest and Governance Authority (SIGA).
It was on the theme: “Developing the Economic Superhighway Through Enhanced Corporate Governance of Specified Entities”.
Mr Amihere noted that most surviving State enterprises or corporations in the country had been transformed into limited liability companies under the Companies Act, with the aim of making them more efficient, effective and profitable.
However, he noted that those new entities were inhibited by a number of State policies and paralegal frameworks, preventing them from operating as true limited liability companies.
He observed that management of the entities could not take bold decisions to transform the companies under their watch and be held accountable for their actions.
“I speak with some experience on this matter,” he said, adding: “Whilst as a board, we are empowered under the Companies Act to take certain decisions, such are the levels of supervisions, controls and decisions that may be taken outside our board room, that doesn’t auger well for the survival and profitability of State enterprises.”
To make those entities more viable and effectively deliver on their mandate, Mr Amihere emphasised the need for government to respect the boundaries of relations between it and State entities to give them the freedom to effectively operate.
“Like the Chinese have successfully done, we have to review the boundaries of relations between the government through the sector ministries and our State entities,” he emphasised.
He added that “unless our State-owned companies and specialised entities are given reasonable latitudes with reduced ministerial fencing, they cannot fully deliver on their mandate.”
Mr Joseph Cudjoe, Minister of Public Enterprises, commended SOEs and OSEs for improved adherence to good corporate governance, including compliance to the regulatory frameworks such as the Public Financial Management Act.
He explained that there had been significant compliance to the signing of performance contracts over the last few years, with about 73 performance contracts signed today as compared to just 16 in 2016.
“We have been able to move audited account preparation, which only was six, six out of the numerous enterprises in 2016 to today, more than a 100,” he said.
On profitability, Mr Cudjoe disclosed that SOEs had been able to reduce losses from some GH¢5.16 billion in 2019 to ¢1.7 billion in 2021.
“So, it means that, if we are measuring performance on the scale of good, better, best we may not be there for us to have said we have attained the best position we desire, but measuring our performance on a scale of bad, worse, worst, in which case the bad is the best, we have done well because we have moved a situation from a worst position through a worse to bad,” the Minister added.
Mr Edward Boateng, Director-General of the SIGA, urged SOEs to expand their operations beyond the shores of the country to enhance their profitability.
Also, he emphasised timely delivery of reports by the SOEs to the Authority to enable it to effectively deliver on its mandate.
On the awards, the Food and Drugs Authority was adjudged the Entity of the Year (2021).
Other awardees were; Most Compliant SOE– Ghana National Petroleum Commission; Most OSE – Ghana Irrigation Development Authority; Most Profitable SOE – Ghana Airport Company Limited; Most Efficient OSE – Ghana Meteorological Agency and Most Financially Sustainable OSE – Gaming Commission of Ghana.
The rest are; Best SOE (Dynamic Effect) – Northern Electricity Development Company; Best OSE (Dynamic Effect) – FDA; SOE of the Year – Ghana Civil Aviation Authority and OSE of the Year – FDA.
GNA