Mahama says 10 state enterprises are being readied for Ghana Stock Exchange listing

Pinned summary · as of 04:55

President John Dramani Mahama says his government has readied 10 state-owned enterprises to be listed on the Ghana Stock Exchange. He spoke in New York on Friday, 25 September 2026, on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly, and argued that a market listing would make the companies better run and less exposed to political influence. Ministers have not yet said which companies are involved.

What we know

• Mr Mahama said 10 state-owned enterprises are being prepared for a Ghana Stock Exchange listing, a plan reported by Graphic Online, The Vaultz News and Rainbow Radio Online.
• The president gave two reasons: to strengthen the way the companies are governed and to lessen political interference in how they operate.
• He argued that having outside shareholders would make it harder for a new government to sack chief executives or dissolve boards as soon as it takes office.
• Mr Mahama said listing would let Ghanaians, including those living abroad, buy shares in the companies through the exchange.
• Listed companies would have to publish audited accounts, meet disclosure rules and answer to shareholders, according to The Vaultz News and Rainbow Radio Online.
• The president described a culture in parts of the state sector where staff expect a monthly salary whatever their performance, and where employees keep pressing for increments and bonuses while their enterprise is losing money.
• Mr Mahama said the state enterprises had swung from years of combined losses to earnings of nearly GH₵19 billion in net profit, and that the Ghana Stock Exchange was Africa's best performer last year, with three IPOs finished in record time.
• The government has not named the 10 enterprises, the size of the share offers or a timetable for the listings, The Vaultz News and Rainbow Radio Online reported.

What's disputed / unconfirmed

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  The Vaultz News reported that the State Interests and Governance Authority (SIGA) recorded GH₵19.8 billion as the sector's net profit after tax in its 2025 State Ownership Report, slightly above the president's figure of almost GH₵19 billion. The report spans 53 state-owned enterprises, 36 joint ventures and 73 other state bodies, and has not been confirmed elsewhere.
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  Graphic Online alone reported Mr Mahama's energy claims: electricity coverage above 90 per cent, solar and other off-grid options for the remaining areas where extending the grid is impractical, and a jump in foreign direct investment, that took the annual total to $2.6 billion at end-2025, against $640 million in 2024,, which he linked to dependable power.
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  The Vaultz News reported that Finance Minister Dr Cassiel Ato Forson described the plan as neither a sale nor a closure of state enterprises, and said government wanted to sell more shares in the Agricultural Development Bank, with the National Investment Bank also under consideration. No other report carries these remarks.
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  The Vaultz News alone reported that the Ghana Stock Exchange's 2025 market report said its talks with SIGA centred on how state enterprises could raise capital through the exchange, and that the Information Services Department said a framework for diaspora investment is being prepared.
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  Reports differ on the setting: Graphic Online and The Vaultz News placed the remarks at the Council on Foreign Relations, Rainbow Radio Online called it an investment forum, and another Vaultz News report spoke of a business and investment engagement.

Why it matters for Ghana

State-owned enterprises run assets in energy, transport, finance and infrastructure, so how they are managed touches electricity users, travellers and taxpayers across Ghana. According to the president, listing would open shareholding to ordinary Ghanaians at home and abroad. With no companies, offer sizes or dates announced, households and investors in Accra and beyond still cannot tell which firms are affected or when shares might be available.