UPDATED: Ghana ‘Free Electricity’ to last till the end of the year

UPDATED: Ghana ‘Free Electricity’ to last till the end of the year

Ghana’s Finance Minister, Mr Ken Ofori-Atta has clarified that all ‘lifeline’ customers will enjoy free electricity for the rest of the year.

By lifeline customers, the Minister is suggesting that,  persons who consume 0-50 Kilowatts hours per month.

In the announcement captured under the government's Ghana Coronavirus Alleviation & Revitalisation of Enterprises Support (CARES) Obaatanpa Programme, the Minister stated that water also would be provided for free for all Ghanaians, but for the next three months.

Earlier this year, in April 9, President Nana Akufo-Addo announced similar free utility package for Ghanaians as a way of cushioning citizens from the impact of the COVID-19 outbreak.

Akufo-Addo in his address to the country, noted that Government would fully cover the bills of ‘life-line’ consumers of electricity in the country for April, May and June 2020.

The remaining consumers who fall outside of this category will enjoy a 50 percent reduction in the cost of electricity for the same period.

Akufo-Addo explaining the life-line consumers said:

 “We have decided further measure of mitigation for Ghanaians for the next three months… Government will fully absorb electricity bills for the poorest of the poor, i.e: lifeline consumers. This will cover persons who consume 0 to 50-kilowatt hours per month for this period. This forms part of relief interventions by the state amid the novel coronavirus pandemic. Other categories of consumers will enjoy a 50 percent discount within the same period. For all other consumers, residential and commercial, the government will absorb 50 percent of your electricity bill for this period using your March 2020 bill as the benchmark,” he noted.

Akufo-Addo also announced three months absorption of water bills for all Ghanaians 

 

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The Finance Minister, presenting the 2020 Mid-Year Budget Review yesterday [July 23] extended the package earlier announced by Akufo-Addo with little differences.

The ‘free Electricity’ was constricted to ‘lifeline’ consumers for 6 Months, while ‘free water’ was extended for three months to all Ghanaians.

It is yet to be mentioned if the free electricity will ‘eventually’ have similar conditions as the package earlier introduced by Akufo-Addo where persons consuming more than 0 to 50 Kw hours per month will have a percentage of their bills slashed by the government.

The Minister Yesterday said:

 “It takes a caring government of the people, and with that, I mean, a Government of all the people, to offer cost-free water to all across the country: representing all domestic and commercial customers in Ghana for three months. 

“It takes a caring government to be for the people and for business, large and small, to choose to subsidise electricity consumption by 50 per cent to 4,086,286 households and 686,522 businesses at a cost of ¢1.02 billion in three months. And we will extend the coverage for lifeline customers for another three months,” he said.