Finance Minister Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson has revealed that the government is weighing plans to list selected State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs), including state-owned banks, on the Ghana Stock Exchange as part of efforts to enhance their governance, efficiency, and profitability.
The initiative forms part of broader reforms aimed at strengthening the performance of public institutions without resorting to outright privatisation or shutting down underperforming entities. Speaking to Citi on July 24, a day after delivering the 2026 Mid-Year Budget Review to Parliament, Dr. Forson explained that several SOEs are under assessment to determine the most effective ways to improve their operations.
He emphasized that the plan should not be seen as an attempt to sell state assets, but rather as a way to increase private sector participation through the capital market while maintaining state ownership. “We are assessing a number of SOEs. It’s not about selling, it’s not about shutting down; it’s about listing some of them on the Stock Exchange to improve governance and ensure profitability,” he said.
State-owned banks are among the institutions being considered for this initiative. Dr. Forson noted that the government intends to deepen private sector participation in the Agricultural Development Bank (ADB), which is already listed on the Ghana Stock Exchange, by selling additional shares to investors. He added that a similar approach could be applied to other state-owned banks, such as the National Investment Bank (NIB), to strengthen their financial standing and operational effectiveness.
“ADB is already there, but we want to deepen it and offload more of those shares to the private sector, to you, to everybody. Everyone can buy some shares. NIB, all of them, we want to,” he explained.
The Finance Minister said that listing more SOEs on the stock exchange would improve corporate governance, enhance transparency and accountability, and help these institutions become more efficient and commercially sustainable.
Source: Apexnewsgh.com