Dr Elikplim Afetorgbor, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Independence Power Generators, has called on the government and the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) to invest in technology to enhance revenue collection in the power sector.
He emphasised that the digitalisation of revenue collection would improve efficiency and productivity in the energy sector.
Dr Afetorgbor, in an interview with the Ghana News Agency, commended the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) for achieving an impressive revenue collection rate of 85 per cent and cautioned against privatising ECG’s revenue collection, citing potential negative consequences.
He suggested that Ghana should emulate developed countries by digitalising ECG’s revenue collection and billing systems which would help prevent personnel from physically visiting households and reduce inefficiencies.
“I commend President John Dramani Mahama for rejecting the call for privatisation of ECG, which l believe that privatisation will be a mistake and a step backward and would not benefit the country,” he said.
Dr Apetorgbor proposed that the government should sell all overused and old Volta River Authority (VRA) plants to support and invest the proceeds in technological solutions to protect ECG’s interests.
Dr Afetorgbor recommended that the Volta River Authority (VRA) should sell its old plant machines to private companies and offer shares to the public to enable all to contribute greatly to the company’s growth and development.
“I suggest that all revenue generated should be channeled into a single account to prevent theft and allegations of corruption.”
The IPG CEO suggested that Ghana’s natural resources such as gold, timber, among others should be used as collateral to private entities to generate funds for development to enable the country to invest in technological solutions and improve its economy in the power sector.
He said the proposals aimed to improve revenue collection in the power sector and investing in technology and digitalising revenue collection, the government could reduce inefficiencies and increase revenue in abundance.
Some residents at Keta, who spoke to GNA, expressed satisfaction about the call for prioritising revenue collection through technology as a timely suggestion.
They appealed to the ECG and the government to as a matter of urgency embrace digitalisation and modernise revenue collection to improve the power sector and drive economic growth.
They said the future prospects for Ghana’s power sector look promising with the potentials for improved efficiency and productivity and urged ECG to resolve frequent power outages in the area to boost growth.