Malaysian Management Contract Of Ghana Telecom To End Next Year

The technical and management consultancy contract between the Ghana government and the Malaysian management of Ghana Telecom would not be renewed when the five-year agreement ends next February.The Ghana government, which is not happy with under hand dealings involving the Malaysians, has ruled out the possibility of a renewal.

Telecom Malaysia would however maintain its 30 per cent shares in Ghana Telecom. The exclusivity given Ghana Telecom and Western Telesystems Ghana Limited (WESTEL) to provide Voice Telephony Service in the country is also not likely to be renewed when the contract expires in February next year.

Ghana's Minister for Communications and Technology, Felix Owusu Adjepong holds that the performance of Ghana Telecom during the exclusivity period was not profitable to the country. Expressing doubts about the practicability of Ghana Telecom’s plan to provide the required 400,000 additional lines, the Minister said government will only grant licences to companies that prove their capability to meet the country’s Telephony needs.

Mr Owusu Adjepong said the Malaysian investors demonstrated bad faith during negotiations with government, when they accused President Kufuor in the Malaysian media of refusing to acknowledge deals and businesses concluded by the NDC government.

The negotiations were on the re-composition of the Ghana Telecom board to reflect the share holding structure and mechanisms to measure performance, capital injection, and a review of the status of other partners in the G-Com consortium.