The Managing Director of the Tema Oil Refinery (TOR), Edmond Kombat, has defended the viability of state-owned enterprises, arguing that they can operate efficiently and generate profits when properly managed.

Speaking at the Government Accountability Series on October 26, 2026, Kombat said Ghana’s experience was challenging the long-held view that government-owned businesses were inherently inefficient or loss-making.

He made the remarks following a question about a recent visit by an International Monetary Fund (IMF) delegation to TOR to assess the refinery’s operations and ongoing recovery efforts.

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Kombat said the engagement provided an opportunity to demonstrate the progress being made at the refinery under President John Dramani Mahama’s administration.

“And we were happy to receive them and show them that under His Excellency President John Dramani Mahama, state entities are working, and are working profitably, and are not the loss-making entities,” he said.

The TOR Managing Director also questioned the effectiveness of some of the IMF’s past economic policy recommendations, arguing that they had not delivered the expected benefits to developing countries.

“But it looks like they are changing their literature, because most of those prescriptions that they give actually haven’t helped the developing countries,” he said.

According to Kombat, the Fund has played a significant role in shaping Ghana’s economic policies over the years, including reforms aimed at reducing government involvement in commercial activities.

He cited programmes such as the Economic Recovery Programme, the Financial Sector Recovery Programme and the divestiture of state-owned enterprises as examples of reforms associated with efforts to reduce the state’s role in business.

He said the IMF had traditionally favoured private sector ownership over government involvement in commercial activities, but suggested that the experience of state-owned enterprises in Ghana warranted a reassessment of that approach.

Kombat said the IMF delegation appeared impressed by the progress made at TOR, particularly efforts to restore operations and improve the refinery’s performance.

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He maintained that state-owned enterprises should be assessed based on their efficiency, operational performance and ability to deliver results rather than simply on whether they were government- or privately owned.

DR/MA

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