Electricity tariffs to be reviewed in 2018 budget — Akufo-Addo

The 2018 budget will set out the road map for the downward review of electricity tariffs in order to provide industry with impetus to actively lead the government’s economic transformation agenda, the President, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, has said.

“Furthermore, the government is moving to set in motion the processes for the review of electricity tariffs and in the budget to be read by the Minister of Finance next Wednesday, November 15, I am sure you will hear something good in this regard,” the President said to the delight of the captains of industry.

The President maintained that “industry is going to be given all the assistance we can muster”.

Looking ahead to a future of possibilities anchored on a robust private sector, the President declared: “I would like to see more collaboration between the private sector and government within the framework of public, private partnership with significant, if not majoritarian, domestic content, as a strategic option to attain economic growth.”

President Akufo-Addo said this when he addressed the sixth Ghana Industry Quality Awards organised by the Association of Ghana Industries (AGI) at the Banquet Hall in Accra last Saturday night.

Key awards

Twenty awards were given to deserving companies. The key award categories included the Overall Best Industry Company of the Year; Best Corporate Social Responsibility Company; Best Company Employer of the Year; Young Enterprise Company (Innovation and Entrepreneurship Award); Fastest-Growing Company of the Year; and Best Practices in Sustainable Manufacturing Company.

Sector awards

The sectors included agribusiness; automotive and transport; chemicals; electricals and electronics; energy; food and beverages; financial services; garments, textiles and leather, and hospitality and tourism.

The rest are information and communications technology (ICT); metals, building and construction; oil and gas services; pharmaceuticals; printing; rubber and plastics; toiletries and cosmetics, and wood processing.

Award winners

The Overall Best Industrial Company of the Year award for the first time went to an indigenous Ghanaian company, Tropical Cable and Conductor Limited.

Other awardees included the best employer company of the year, Dangote Cement Limited; Best Corporate Social Responsible Company of the year, Nkonkopa Cocoa Buying Ghana Limited.

Best Social Enterprise was secured by Autism Awareness Care and Treatment; the Young Enterprise award went to Global Poly Ghana Limited; the fastest-growing company of the year was taken by Dannex Limited, while the Best Practices in Sustainable Manufacturing award went to Guinness Ghana Ltd.

The National Best Quality Award, Diamond category, went to Total Petroleum Limited; the Gold category was taken by Ever Pure Ghana Limited, with the overall best quality award going to Total Petroleum Ghana Limited.

Ensuring access to credit

The President said the government was also designing innovative solutions to ensure access to medium to long-term finance for enterprises, which was one of the main constraints to rapid industrial growth.

“Very soon, the solutions for addressing this problem will be unveiled,” the President assured.

According to the President, the New Patriotic Party (NPP) had deeply embedded in its philosophy, ideology and DNA, an unshakable belief in open markets as the most effective means of developing and allocating resources in every given sector of the economy.

“We want the Ghanaian entrepreneur to be in the forefront of the critical national assignment of undertaking the structural transformation of our economy,” the President re-echoed.

The President was happy that businesses were no longer burdened by the erratic power supply that badly affected the nation in recent years, saying: “Dumsor, thank God, appears now to be a thing of unlamented past.”

President Akufo-Addo expressed confidence in the future of the country and declared that, “today, our nation stands on the threshold of a momentous transformation, the likes of which our history has never known. It is an exciting time to be a Ghanaian”.

He was emphatic that the “government’s objective was clear – the world has seen the Asian Tigers, but it’s time it saw the African Lions. Ghana must definitely be among the very first, because we can”.

Writer’s email: victor.kwawukume@graphic.com.gh