Energy sector needs skilled leadership amidst ECG board chair resignation – ACEP

Benjamin Boakye, Executive Director of the Africa Centre for Energy Policy (ACEP), has emphasized the importance of having a skilled and experienced individual lead the energy sector following the resignation of Keli Gadzekpo as the Board Chair of the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG).

Mr. Gadzekpo stepped down from his position on Tuesday, citing personal reasons.

In response, President Nana Akufo-Addo appointed Herbert Krapa, the Deputy Energy Minister, as the new Board Chair of ECG, tasked with addressing the recent power outages that have been affecting the country.

In an interview on Eyewitness News on Citi FM with Umaru Sanda Amadu on Wednesday, March 27, Mr. Boakye expressed concerns about the challenges in the energy sector and the need for someone with the expertise to navigate them, especially in an election year.

He highlighted the importance of reducing the burden on the state and the people of Ghana and urged Krapa to seek counsel and work towards finding solutions to the challenges facing the sector.

With the budget for essential services at stake, Boakye stressed the importance of making sound decisions to ensure that resources are not diverted from crucial areas such as education, healthcare, and infrastructure.

He acknowledged the difficulties that come with making decisions in an election year and urged Krapa to carefully navigate the challenges ahead.

“I think at this point we want to hope that if he doesn’t understand how the sector works, it will take time to appreciate his job at this point, to understand that the liability on the state is in the exchange of experience, and therefore we need a skilled hand to be able to reverse the trend and reduce the burden on the state and on the people of Ghana.”

“We need to take time to appreciate that he’ll seek counsel and be able to work to reduce that burden, and that’s what we’ve been fighting for over this year so that the budget that is supposed to go to the schools, to the hospitals, the road infrastructure, protecting the vulnerable is not used to repay for the electricity that has been consumed. Considering the timing, I don’t know, it’s an election year where historically, the power sector has struggled to make sound decisions so I don’t know how he’ll be able to navigate that within this period.”

 

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