President John Dramani Mahama has warned that the government will no longer continue to absorb persistent financial losses incurred by State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs), urging their boards and management teams to improve efficiency, accountability and profitability.

Speaking at a conference organised by the State Interests and Governance Authority (SIGA) at La Palm Royal Beach Hotel, Mahama said the government had reset its relationship with state-owned enterprises and would demand greater value from institutions entrusted with managing public assets.

He said the time had come for SOEs to operate with a stronger sense of responsibility, noting that their continued dependence on government support placed an unnecessary burden on the national budget.

“Persistent losses will no longer be quietly absorbed into the national budget,” President Mahama said.

According to the President, leadership positions in state-owned enterprises must be linked to measurable performance, value creation and profitability.

Mahama reminded boards, chief executives and management of SOEs that the assets under their control ultimately belong to the people of Ghana.

He pointed to the country's ports, power infrastructure, factories, water systems, pension funds, lands, buildings, equipment and government-owned shares as some of the assets being held in trust on behalf of Ghanaians.

“These assets do not belong to any government, a board, or a chief executive. They belong to the people of Ghana, and you and I hold them only in trust for the people,” he said.

He said the central principle guiding the conference was that public ownership must produce public value.

President Mahama therefore challenged every institution represented at the gathering to demonstrate, with credible evidence, the value it had created for the Ghanaian people.