The Ghana Union of Traders Association (GUTA) has criticised the lack of consultation surrounding the announced utility tariff adjustment.

It says the business community was taken by surprise despite what it describes as improving economic indicators.

Vice President of GUTA, Joseph Paddy, said traders only learnt of the decision through public announcements, without prior engagement from relevant authorities.

“We slept one night, woke up in the morning, and we heard announcements that they’re going to increase tariff adjustments, and we’re like, why so when we were not engaged,” he said.

He stressed that stakeholder participation is essential in any decision that affects the cost of doing business, especially utility pricing.

“For good governance, you need stakeholder engagement and participation. So if you’re going to increase tariff, you need to engage,” he added.

Mr Paddy questioned the rationale for the increase, citing what he described as improving macroeconomic conditions, as cited by the authorities themselves.

“In the letter, all the proposals they put in place- fluctuation of the cedi, about four issues they cited- we see they are all in a positive direction. If they are in a positive direction, then why do you want to increase utility tariffs?” he asked.

He argued that key economic indicators have shown stability over the past months, particularly the exchange rate.

“We have had stability of the cedi against the dollar for some time now, for over 15 to 16 months, which we think today, when I was taking dollars to cedi, is about ¢11.25 or so, which is in a positive direction,” he said.

He further compared current conditions with previous periods of severe currency depreciation.

“Once upon a time, it was around ¢17 to $1,” he noted.

Mr Paddy also cited falling interest rates as another sign of improved economic conditions.

“And then the interest rate has dropped. Today, interest is moving around 12%. The exchange rate has also dropped,” he said.

He insisted that based on these indicators, expectations within the business community were for relief rather than additional costs.

“So, putting all these factors together, we were thinking that if anything should, if there is going to be an announcement at all, it’s be a reduction, not increase,” he said.

The GUTA Vice President’s comments reflect growing unease within the trading community, which says it was not consulted before the tariff decision and believes current economic trends do not justify higher utility costs.