$103m electricity project for 582 communities

A total of 582 Communities in five regions are expected to benefit from a $ 103 million electrification agreement between the Government of Ghana through the Energy Ministry and the China International Water and Electric Corporation.

Kojo Oppong Nkrumah, Information Minister, revealed this to journalists on Wednesday, October 30, 2019, in Accra.

He said Cabinet has given approval for the projects in the five regions.

He mentioned that the beneficiary regions are Ashanti, Bono, Eastern, Volta and Western Regions, a phase two of the initial 1,033 communities.



“The phase one project was earmarked to connect 495 communities in 15 Districts of the Ashanti, Eastern, Volta and Western Regions which is about 90 percent complete with 441 communities already connected to the national grid,” he said.

The money for phase two will be used to finance the supply and reception of electrical materials and equipment for the electrification projects in these communities, according to him.

The agreement is part of government’s National Electrification Scheme since 1990 which is aimed at reducing poverty especially in rural areas, increasing the overall socio-economic development of the nation and enhancing the activities in other sectors of the economy such as Agriculture, Health, Education and Tourism.

The scope of the project includes design, manufacture, delivery, installation, testing and commissioning, as well as handing over of the electrification project to the beneficiary communities.

He said “Government believes the scheme will also create jobs in the rural areas, thus reducing the rate of rural to urban migration and most importantly contribute significantly towards the achievement of universal access to electricity, a minimum of 90% by 2020.”

Source: dailyguidenetwork.com