Dividend payments by State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs) to the Government declined by 45.5 per cent in 2025, raising concerns about the profitability and cash-generating capacity of a significant portion of the state-owned portfolio.

The 2025 State Ownership Report said dividend payments from selected SOEs dropped to GHS16.0 million in FY2025 from GHS29.36 million recorded in FY2024.

The report said the FY2025 dividend receipts represented just 0.92 per cent of the GHS1.746 billion in total dividends received by the Government from institutional groups, underscoring the relatively modest contribution of SOEs to overall dividend inflows.

Despite some signs of operational improvement among a number of state enterprises, the report noted that only two SOEs paid dividends to the Government during the review period.

The Ghana Reinsurance Company Limited (Ghana Re) paid GHS13.0 million, while Tema Development Company (TDC) Limited contributed GHS3.0 million.

The company’s payment, however, declined from GHS25.0 million recorded in FY2024, accounting largely for the overall reduction in dividend receipts from the sector.

TDC’s dividend payment remained unchanged from the previous year.

The report commended the two entities for maintaining consistent shareholder returns, describing their performance as an indication of prudent financial management and operational resilience.

“Notably, TDC and Ghana Re demonstrated consistency in returning value to the shareholder through dividend payments,” the report stated.

However, it cautioned that the decline in aggregate dividend contributions highlighted the need for stronger profitability across the SOE landscape.

The report attributed the situation partly to persistent balance-sheet weaknesses among several state-owned enterprises, some of which continue to operate with negative equity positions despite recording improvements in operational performance.

Among the entities identified with negative equity were; AirtelTigo Ghana Limited, Ghana Water Limited, GNPA Limited, and Tema Oil Refinery.

According to the report, sustained losses and accumulated liabilities in some enterprises continued to constrain their ability to generate shareholder value and make dividend payments.

The State Interests and Governance Authority (SIGA), which oversees the performance of SOEs, was urged to intensify efforts aimed at improving efficiency, strengthening corporate governance and enhancing financial sustainability across the sector.

The report stressed that increasing dividend payments remained critical to ensuring that state-owned enterprises contributed meaningfully to national revenue mobilisation and provided adequate returns on public investments.

It called for measures to strengthen profitability, dividend policy compliance and cash-generation capacity among SOEs to improve returns to the Government as shareholder.

The findings come at a time when authorities are seeking to improve public sector efficiency and maximise value from state investments as part of broader efforts to support economic recovery and fiscal consolidation.