News Guide Africa

Tag: CSOs

  • President Mahama’s Engagement with CSOs and Religious Bodies on Galamsey: The Good, The Bad and The Ugly

    President Mahama’s Engagement with CSOs and Religious Bodies on Galamsey: The Good, The Bad and The Ugly

    On 3rd October 2025, President Mahama engaged over 50 civil society organisations, religious bodies, professional associations, student bodies, etc. on Galamsey.

    Here is a breakdown of “the good, the bad, and the ugly” of the engagement based on observations by Mr. Kwadwo Kyei Yamoah, Executive Director of HELP Foundation Africa

    Summary

    The Good: The meeting yielded important political signaling of the presidential pledge and openness to a State of Emergency if warranted, and a commitment to intensify security operations and arrests, which is the “good” because it aligns the Presidency with civil society pressure to make public commitments.

    The meeting was representative and has key representatives from Government and the ruling party as well as the invitees (CSOs, Academia, Religious Bodies, etc), however the next meeting should be at a bigger venue with expanded invitations to other identifiable groups, CSOs, etc..

    The “bad” is the lack of immediately published benchmarks/ milestones, timelines, and a clear plan for prosecutions; much of these remain at the promise stage.

    The presentation on the water quality made by the Water Resources Commission was selective, biased and misleading, that was the worst presentation at the meeting.

    It seems the alternative livelihoods schemes have not been properly packaged to be sustainable and attractive enough for those engaged in Galamsey.

    There was no established communication unit/ desk/ contact to receive or collate post-engagement inputs, concerns, submissions or recommendations to support the anti-galamsey action, etc.

    The “ugly” included the burning of galamsey machines (Changfan) directly on the rivers by NAIMOS, this have serious adverse impacts on rivers and aquatic ecosystems and will further increase the contamination and pollution of the rivers,Dunkwa interview will be on Thursday

    So those of you from Dunkwa will not go to Tarkwa again because of the release of toxic chemicals, heat, soot, etc. from the burning of the fuel and other petroleum products in the machines; this have dangerous impact on the aquatic life, water quality, and human health. (This would be avoided, rather alternative ways of disposing the machines should be looked at)

    Another risk is that without judicial follow-through (fast-track prosecutions) and specific targeting of the kingpins; enforcement will be temporary and possibly punitive to only the poorest people, leaving the structural drivers (Kingpins or politically exposed persons) untouched.

    The meeting seems to have endorsed the desire to increase the budget allocation for anti-galamsey activities; But increasing the budget may not yield the desired results without anti-corruption safeguards, independent monitoring, performance benchmarks and milestones.

     

    Quick priority recommendation (which actions to push first)

     

    1. Publish transparent benchmarks that would trigger a state of emergency. This would convert the political rhetoric into measurable triggers and addresses CSO demand for clarity.

    2. Public prosecution dashboard: require the Attorney-General/EOCO to publish a regular dashboard showing arrests → charges → trials → convictions, and list “named” cases including kingpins and politically exposed persons. This will tackle the trust deficit.

    3. Improving the transparency of information on impacts of Galamsey: Quarterly publication of Water index and heavy metal analysis on all affected water bodies, Toxicology Assessment on crops and food items, outcome of Investigations into Kingpins and financiers of Galamsey

    4. Secure & sustain reclaimed zones: pair security operations with post-clearance monitoring and community engagement so cleared forests/water bodies are not re-occupied. There could be an open and transparent forest monitoring with community members; the formation of community-forest management systems such as CREMA in recovered forest areas would be good.

     

    Suggested Monitoring Indicators (to include in a follow-up civil society scorecard)

    1. Benchmarks published with dates and indicators.

    2. Arrests →and Prosecutions → Convictions including kingpins: % breakdown within 12 months.

    3. Hectares reclaimed & retained: hectares cleared and still clear after 6/12 months.

    4. Machines seized/destroyed: number and disposition.

    5. Number of fast-track court sessions: cases tried per month including Kingpins. And protection progress: number and type.

    6. Budget lines for alternative livelihoods and impacts made: GH₵ allocated vs disbursed vs impact.

    Recommendation

    The Formation of an independent anti-galamsey oversight committee (with reps from CSOs, religious bodies, Academia, media, judiciary, etc) could address the trust deficit, suspicion of internal & external politics, etc

    Quarterly multi-stakeholder engagements on Galamsey to review performance and impacts of anti-galamsey actions would also be a good platform for continuous inclusive dialogue, etc.

     

    By Mr. Kwadwo Kyei Yamoah, Executive Director of HELP Foundation Africa.

  • Electricity tariff hike: CSOs, businesses clash over impact on consumers

    Adnan Adams Mohammed

    In an unusual situation, the Ghana National Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GNCCI) has down played fears of a potential impact of the recently announced increase in electricity tariffs on prices of goods and services.

    Their seeming support for the tariff hike follows criticism from some Civil Society Organisations against the Public Utilities Regulatory Commission (PURC) for the 2.45 percent tariff hike effective July 1, 2025, citing a lack of transparency, inadequate stakeholder engagement, and a disregard for economic indicators that should have warranted a reduction.

    The adjustment follows the Commission’s routine quarterly review. Meanwhile, water tariffs will remain unchanged for the third quarter of the year.

    In a joint statement issued last week, CUTS International Accra and the Centre for Environmental Management and Sustainable Energy (CEMSE) accused PURC of violating Section 3(c) of Act 538 of 1997, which mandates fair utility pricing for the mutual benefit of the government, producers, and end-users. However, the GNCCI CEO downplayed the potential impact of the increment, describing it as minimal.

    “What we are looking at is that if there is a further improvement in the key variables, we expect the tariffs for businesses to eventually be reduced,” Mark Badu-Aboagye said in an interview last week.

    He added: “Electricity costs per kilowatt hour in Ghana are already quite high, so an additional 2.45% increase will certainly raise production costs. However, I don’t believe this will result in a significant rise in prices.”

    Meanwhile, the CSOs argue that the proposed tariff increase is unjustified given recent improvements in Ghana’s macroeconomic conditions.

    The civil society groups cited the appreciation of the Ghanaian cedi against the US dollar and declining inflation rates both key variables in the tariff-setting formula.

    In a statement signed by the West African Regional Director of CUTS International, Appiah Kusi Adomako and the Executive Director for CEMSE, Benjamin Nsiah criticised PURC for failing to align its tariff review with current economic realities. They insist that consumers had expected a downward revision, not an increase.

    They pointed to the over 30% appreciation of the Ghanaian Cedi between the first and second quarters of 2025—from GH¢15.70 to GH¢10.31 per US dollar—which they say generated a GH¢1 billion windfall for government and utility providers. This surplus, they argued, could have been used to clear arrears or reduce consumer costs, rendering the tariff hike unjustifiable.

    The CSOs also criticised the PURC for relying on an outdated inflation rate of 20.67%, rather than the current 18.4%, noting that falling inflation lowers operational costs and should benefit consumers.

    Additionally, they described the increase in the Weighted Average Cost of Gas (WACOG) by only $0.08 (1%) as too insignificant to warrant a tariff hike. They cited a previous instance in 2024 when a 25% rise in gas costs led to only a 3.5% increase in tariffs, making the current adjustment appear economically indefensible.

    The statement further questioned the PURC’s justification of GH¢488 million in arrears, pointing out the Commission’s failure to explain how the cedi appreciation windfall was utilised. They also accused PURC of excluding stakeholders from the decision-making process, particularly in introducing fuel costs and reserve margins into the tariff without public disclosure or consultation. The CSOs noted the lack of transparency regarding the 27% fuel cost component, for which no data, simulations, or procurement details were shared.

    Warning of long-term consequences, the CSOs said continued upward tariff adjustments could entrench inefficiencies in Ghana’s power sector and unjustly burden consumers.

    “If care is not taken, PURC’s frequent upward tariff adjustments could succeed in the creation of an energy sector that is not efficient,” the statement read.

    They called on the President of Ghana to immediately halt the 2.45% tariff increase and demanded full disclosure of the tariff adjustment methodology and the assumptions that informed the Commission’s decision.