ASEC BLOG

 The Africa Sustainable Energy Centre commends the new government for setting up a committee to oversee the privatization of the commercial aspect of the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG). However, recent comments and suggestions seem to recommend just the need for private sector participation in ECG revenue mobilisation. The truth is that Ghana does not just need the participation of the private sector for revenue mobilisation. The current state of the ECG requires more than assistance in collecting money owed by customers. We need private sector capital and expertise in critical terms to recoup all revenues and achieve operational excellence before transitioning the ECG. This commercial sector privatisation is stringent because of the following areas: 1. Private sector capital and expertise are needed in the installation of smart meters to ensure accurate and real-time billing, reducing revenue losses due to faulty, inaccurate, or bypassed meters. Also, this is needed to up...

  Effective governance in Ghana’s energy sector depends on transparency, accountability, and efficiency.  A critical step toward achieving these objectives is ensuring that the boards of key entities within the energy value chain include representatives from other major stakeholders.  This cross-representation fosters collaboration, enhances decision-making, and aligns the interdependent roles of various entities, ultimately strengthening sector operations. Such governance reforms are particularly important for improving financial mechanisms like the cash waterfall system and ensuring the long-term sustainability of the energy sector. They also provide valuable insights for ongoing discussions about the privatisation of the Electricity Company of Ghana. Diversity in Board Composition Strengthening Decision-Making Ghana’s energy value chain is made up of key institutions, including the Ministry of Energy, the Public Utilities Regulatory Commission, the Electricity Compa...

  Image Source: The Borgen Project Through research and development, it is established that the lack of energy is as unsustainable as the overuse of energy. In our energy-yearning ordeal, energy harness and its security plays a vital role in sustainable development. This, thus manifests so intricately such that, the more we become developed, the more energy we use, and vice versa. One of the most fundamental issues that challenge the very being of us, poverty—widely conceptualised in a number of ways; economic and social. But the dimensions of research that conjuncts poverty and energy in rural regions of Africa is, however minimally explored. Along this breath, the tail of a complex problem which remains an ongoing dent on sustainability waggles—Energy Poverty. Widely defined, energy poverty is the lack of access to sustainable and affordable, clean energy services. Economically, the lack of energy and poverty often go hand in hand, both at national and rural levels, in African r...

In many homes across the globe particularly in Africa, the simple act of preparing a meal comes at a heavy price. Traditional cooking methods, which often rely on open fires and inefficient stoves fueled by firewood or charcoal, emit harmful smoke that endangers the health, depletes natural resources, and contributes negatively to climate change.  These practices disproportionately affect women and girls, who bear the brunt of household cooking duties, sacrificing their time, health, and economic opportunities just to put a meal on the table for the family. Clean cooking technologies offer a promising solution not only to a healthier environment but also a path to gender equality, economic empowerment, and sustainable development. With over 2.4 billion people globally still lacking access to clean cooking solutions, achieving universal adoption is both a challenge and an opportunity to address interconnected global goals, including health, climate resilience, and poverty reduction...