President John Mahama has given a further indication there would be no staff lay-off at the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) after implementation of the new Millennium Compact.
Compact Two, which is aimed at injecting fresh resources into the power sector over five years has generated nationwide furore, with ECG staff, unconvinced about their job security, protesting the process to choose a concessionaire.
Addressing the 10th quadrennial congress of the Ghana Trades Union Congress in Kumasi, President Mahama said no staff of the power distribution company would lose their job or be retrenched as part of the implementation.
The pronouncement by the President received a thunderous applause at the Great Hall of the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, the venue for the TUC congress.
“I wish to assure organized labour once again, as President of the Republic, that there would be no lay-offs or retrenchments as a result of the implementation of this compact, I assure you of that,” he emphasized.
According to President Mahama, a detailed constraint analysis has already been carried out by a team, led by Professor Samuel Sefa-Dede, Board Chairman of Millennium Development Authority (MiDA).
At least, government will, as part of the agreement, receive $500 million to be injected into the power sector to help improve efficiency at the Electricity Company of Ghana.
President Mahama is hopeful this would improve generation, transmission and distribution of power in general in Ghana.
“Based on our agreement, under the compact, about $500 million in grant is to be injected into our power sector to improve generational, transmission and distribution efficiencies over the next five years. The bulk of these resources will go to improve the organizational and operational efficiency of the Electricity Company of Ghana,” President Mahama explained.
He also announced cabinet had already approved the International Labour Organization’s Maternity Protection Convention which will safeguard the health of expectant and nursing mothers and also protect them from job discrimination.
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