Dr. Ishmael Ackah, who is the Executive Secretary of the Public Utilities Regulatory Commission of Ghana indicated that the gross subsidy that the residential consumers enjoyed as the result of businesses has been reduced to make sure that businesses can stay and expand in the country.
According to the report, he indicated that the gross subsidy has been reduced by 30 percent in other to eliminate the gap between residential and non-residential tariffs.
He explained that, by bridging, the gap between residential and non-residential consumers is mainly seeking to retain and influence businesses into the country to help rebuild the country.
He again added that the tariffs are not to shift the cost on the residential, this is to reduce the gross subsidy, He said most often, industries have been subsidizing the residential sector.
He noted that over the years, businesses have been fleeing Ghana for countries where non-residential consumers pay less than residential consumers because, for the past 25 years, businesses in Ghana have been made to subsidize utility tariffs for residential consumers.
“Now we hear in even the news that businesses are leaving, some are relocating to Cote D’Ivoire because their businesses pay far lower than the residential sector. If you go to Uganda it’s the same thing, you go to Namibia, and almost everywhere businesses pay less. Why? Because it costs less to serve businesses than to serve residential customers. That’s the first one.”
He again said they are using the power for productive purposes and after expanding the recruit internally among the residents, pay them well so they can also create jobs that will contribute to the economic development.
“In Ghana, it has been the reverse since PURC was established 25 years ago. It may have a reason why it started. But it comes to a point where we need to, if nothing at all, let residential match non-residential. And the reason is that yes, businesses can stay and employ people. Businesses can stay and expand.”
Tags: Dr. Ishmael Ackah Public Utilities Regulatory Commission.
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