Ghana’s state-owned enterprises have staged a dramatic financial turnaround, recording a combined net profit after tax of GH¢19.8 billion in 2025, according to the State Interests and Governance Authority’s (SIGA) 2025 State Ownership Report.
The report, which covers 162 of the 175 specified entities under SIGA’s oversight, reveals a sector that has broken a four-year cycle of consolidated net losses. However, behind the headline gains lies a complex picture of persistent losses, mounting liabilities, and structural vulnerabilities that threaten the sustainability of the recovery.
Here are the 10 key findings from the report:
- Historic Return to Profitability
Ghana’s State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs) recorded a combined net profit after tax of GH¢19.8 billion in 2025, a remarkable 976.43% improvement from the GH¢2.26 billion consolidated loss recorded in 2024. The turnaround was supported by a 28.12% increase in aggregate revenue, which rose to GH¢176.43 billion from GH¢137.64 billion. The growth was largely driven by strong performance in the agricultural, manufacturing, and infrastructure sub-sectors, which recorded revenue increases of 203.71%, 114.74%, and 92.24%, respectively.
- Strong Cedi and Exchange Gains
The appreciation of the Ghana cedi was a major factor in the sector’s financial performance. The cedi strengthened from GH¢14.70 to the US dollar at the end of 2024 to GH¢10.45 by December 2025, representing a 40.67% appreciation. Average annual inflation also declined from 23.8% to 14.6%.
This improved currency environment helped reduce consolidated finance costs by 42.49%, while SOEs recorded GH¢11.72 billion in net exchange gains, compared to a GH¢12.01 billion foreign exchange loss in 2024. The cedi’s strength was driven by record gold prices, which breached $4,000 per ounce, and the Bank of Ghana’s gold-backed monetary policies.
- Persistent Losses at Five SOEs
Despite the sector-wide turnaround, several state companies continue to struggle financially. Five SOEs—the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG), Ghana Cylinder Manufacturing Company, GNPA Ltd, Graphic Communications Group Company, and Ghana Digital Centre—recorded net losses in every year from 2021 to 2025.
ECG remains the most persistent underperformer, recording an average annual net loss of approximately GH¢291.80 million over the five-year period. The data suggests that the broader SOE recovery has not yet resolved the underlying structural problems within individual entities.
- ECG’s Mounting Debt Burden
The power sector presents some of the clearest financial vulnerabilities identified by the report. ECG’s debt-to-assets ratio stood at 0.99:1 in 2025, meaning its liabilities accounted for almost the entire value of its assets. The company had total assets of approximately GH¢82.75 billion against total liabilities of GH¢82.32 billion, making it the single largest contributor to the sector’s liability burden.
ECG’s financial challenges were further highlighted in its 2025 audited financial statements, which recorded a GH¢2.5 billion after-tax loss. The company spent GH¢34.8 billion on power purchases during the year, resulting in a gross loss of GH¢12.7 billion. While a GH¢12.2 billion foreign exchange gain helped reduce the final loss, ECG’s equity position weakened sharply from GH¢5.25 billion to GH¢438 million, while its accumulated deficit reached GH¢27.5 billion.
- VRA’s Declining Equity
The Volta River Authority (VRA) also recorded a significant decline in its equity position, which fell by 25.7%, from GH¢49.08 billion to GH¢36.44 billion. These figures raise concerns about the financial resilience of two of Ghana’s most strategically important power-sector institutions.
- High Concentration of Assets and Revenue
Although the report covers 162 entities, financial activity remains highly concentrated. Just 10 SOEs accounted for 79.22% of total sector assets, valued at GH¢323.11 billion. They also generated 81.09% of total SOE revenue. This concentration means the performance of a relatively small number of large state companies has a disproportionate impact on the overall SOE balance sheet.
- SOE Assets Equivalent to 84% of GDP
The scale of the country’s public enterprise sector has become significant. The combined assets of specified entities stood at an amount equivalent to 84.43% of Ghana’s nominal GDP of GH¢1.434 trillion in 2025. SOEs alone accounted for assets equivalent to 28.44% of nominal GDP. These figures underscore the importance of the financial position of state enterprises to economic stability, fiscal management, and debt sustainability.
- OSEs Record Wider Deficit
The recovery among commercial SOEs was not replicated across the broader public enterprise sector. Other State Entities (OSEs), including subvented and regulatory institutions, saw their aggregate deficit widen by 335.8%, from GH¢2.40 billion in 2024 to GH¢10.48 billion in 2025.
The deterioration was largely linked to a 47.18% decline in revenue, particularly internally generated funds. The report noted that the shift was driven substantially by the Bank of Ghana’s negative equity position of GH¢93 billion, highlighting continued financial pressure on entities that rely heavily on government subventions to fund their operations.
- GoldBod’s Impressive Debut
The restructuring of the Precious Minerals Marketing Company (PMMC) into the Ghana Gold Board (GoldBod) was one of the major institutional developments captured in the report. GoldBod received a GH¢4.55 billion government grant as revolving trade capital, contributing to a 274.7% increase in its total assets to GH¢9.55 billion.
The entity also recorded an operating profit before interest and tax of GH¢896.52 million, while its non-tax revenue surged from GH¢307.7 million in 2024 to GH¢970.8 million in 2025—an increase of more than 300%. Total expenditure declined to GH¢109.4 million in 2025 from GH¢129.7 million in 2024, even as staff strength increased from 114 to 450 employees. The figures show the scale of the financial restructuring accompanying the government’s new approach to the management and marketing of gold resources in the country.
- Irregularities Fall, But Gender Gaps Persist
One of the strongest improvements recorded in the report was in financial controls and accountability. Recoverable irregularities across the state enterprise sector fell by 85.6%, from GH¢15.57 billion in 2024 to approximately GH¢2.24 billion in 2025. SIGA attributes the significant reduction largely to the Ministry of Finance’s implementation of commitment authorisation controls, which helped limit unauthorised procurement and spending.
However, employment data reveals a persistent gender imbalance. Employment across specified entities increased by 5.45% to 98,724 workers in 2025. While female employment grew by 8.02%, almost twice the 4.39% growth recorded for male employees, women occupied only 28.45% of executive management positions across specified entities and 21.75% of board seats.
A Cautionary Note on the “Recovery”
While the headline figures suggest a sector in robust health, some analysts have questioned the interpretation of the data. Bright Simons, Vice President of IMANI Africa, has challenged SIGA’s reported figures, arguing that the improvement was significantly influenced by currency-related gains rather than stronger underlying business performance.
“State-owned businesses’ underlying profitability declined in 2025,” Simons stated on X. “Contrary to what SIGA says, when you remove the currency effects, net profit fell 17.1%, operating profit fell 22.7%, and the operating margin narrowed by three and a half percentage points between 2024 and 2025”.
Simons contends that excluding currency revaluations, profit actually fell from GH¢9.75 billion to GH¢8.08 billion, a decline of 17.1%—a picture markedly different from the dramatic turnaround presented in the official report.
The Road Ahead
Despite the improved performance, SIGA has warned against complacency. The report concludes: “The gains of FY2025 must not become a temporary rebound. They must become the foundation for a more efficient, competitive, inclusive and sustainable State-owned sector that creates value for the Ghanaian taxpayer and contributes meaningfully to national development”.
The Authority has called for stronger accountability, disciplined capital allocation, decisive action against chronically underperforming entities, and the institutionalisation of performance-driven governance across the state-owned sector. Dividend payments to government fell by 29.36% to GH¢16 million, with only Ghana Reinsurance Company Ltd and TDC Company Ltd paying dividends during the year.
As the sector transitions from recovery to long-term stability, the focus must shift toward addressing the structural challenges that continue to weigh on entities like ECG and expanding the base of profitable enterprises beyond the dominant few.
