A former Minister for Public Enterprises, Joseph Cudjoe has exposed what he calls the "lies" of Finance Minister, Ato Forson that most State-owned enterprises (SOEs) are in the red.

Speaking at the National Economic Dialogue, Dr Forson painted a bleak picture of the state of SOEs, stating emphatically that most of them are struggling financially.

“SOEs and joint venture companies are showing mounting operational and financial risk. Almost all state-owned enterprises are in the red. From ECG to the ADB, almost all of them are in the red,” said the Finance Minister.

But Joseph Cudjoe, whose Ministry was in charge of state enterprises under the immediate past Akufo-Addo government has debunked the Finance Minister's claims as "lies".

"There are 53 SOEs. 39 reported profits in 2023, per their audited accounts. 5 improved in performance from 2022 to 2023 by reducing losses. Why would the Finance Minister have the guts to say MOST of the SOEs were in red? Meanwhile, during their time, most of these SOEs were not even preparing accounts at all," Joseph Cudjoe said in a statement.

He continued: ''It is worth noting that Ghana has 175 public enterprises on its assets register. 53 are State Owned Enterprises (SOEs) which are commercial per their mandates), 75 Other State Entities (OSEs). These are regulators like Food and Drugs Authority, Petroleum Commission, National Petroleum Authority, GPHA, DVLA, GRA, etc. These 75 OSEs are distinct from the 53 SOEs which are expected to make profit."

"Finally, there are 47 Joint Venture Companies (JVCs), which are co-shared commercial-investments by government with private investors. Examples include GOIl, GCB Bank, SIC Insurance, Newmont, Goldfields, etc, etc. This category is largely profitable," Joseph Cudjoe added.

Joseph Cudjoe urged Dr Ato Forson to stop peddling lies that most SOEs are in the red, and rather paint the correct situation of the ''few'' that are in red.

"The Finance Minister should note that there is an ongoing program to bring the troublesome SOEs to profitability. These troublesome ones include TOR, COCOBOD, ECG, Ghana Water, PBC, etc. The current Finance minister should stop peddling lies that “most” are in red because it’s rather few that are in red. Most rather prepared accounts, got them audited and they reported profits in 2023."

Below is the full statement:

THE FINANCE MINISTER LIED THAT MOST SOEs ARE IN RED:

Joseph Cudjoe Replies

There are 53 SOEs. 39 reported profits in 2023, per their audited accounts. 5 improved in performance from 2022 to 2023 by reducing losses. Why would the Finance Minister have the guts to say MOST of the SOEs were in red? Meanwhile, during their time, most of these SOEs were not even preparing accounts at all.

It is worth noting that Ghana has 175 public enterprises on its assets register. 53 are State Owned Enterprises (SOEs) which are commercial per their mandates), 75 Other States Entities (OSEs). These are regulators like Food and Drugs Authority, Petroleum Commission, National Petroleum Authority, GPHA, DVLA, GRA, etc. These 75 OSEs are distinct from the 53 SOEs which are expected to make profit.

Finally there are 47 Joint Venture Companies (JVCs), which are co-shared commercial-investments by government with private investors. Examples include GOIl, GCB Bank, SIC Insurance, Newmont, Goldfields, etc, etc. This category is largely profitable

States Interest and Governance Authority (SIGA), an initiative by Akufo Addo’s government, has been responsible for bringing all these 175 public investments into a sharp focus so that their performances can be constantly monitored. Today, we have data to use to manage these enterprises and their performances are even ranked in a Public Enterprises League Table (PELT).

The Finance Minister should note that there is an ongoing program to bring the troublesome SOEs to profitability. These troublesome ones include TOR, COCOBOD, ECG, Ghana Water, PBC, etc. The current Finance minister should stop peddling lies that “most” are in red because it’s rather few that are in red. Most rather prepared accounts, got them audited and they reported profits in 2023.

There has been constant performance improvements in these public enterprises since 2017 as opposed to the period before 2017 when companies like BOST (notorious for contaminated fuels during NDC’s time) and Ghana Publishing Company Limited were not even preparing accounts at all.

Hon Joseph Cudjoe

Former Minister, Public Enterprises