The Director of Special Projects at the Presidency, Dr. Mutaka Alolo, has refuted claims by the Minority in Parliament that just $100 million out of over $600 million has been accessed under the Sinohydro deal.
“As I am talking to you, I don’t know the current exact price, but it is far more than $100 million,” Dr. Alolo said on the Citi Breakfast Show.
“Six months ago when we were talking about this, we were around $150 million,” he added.
Dr. Alolo was responding to the comments made by the Ranking Member on Parliament’s Road Committee, Kwame Agbodza, after the State of the Nation Address.
Mr. Agbodza had also said the Chinese government had provided less than half of the agreed amount for the project, hence the delay in the completion of the first phase.
Dr. Alolo explained that, how much money has been drawn down, tallies with how much work has been done under the project.
“When the contractors work and the interim payment certificate is arranged, and it is sent for approval by the Ministry of Roads and Highways, then we send it to the financiers to release the money for the contractors.”
He also said there were no issues with the repayment of the money granted under the deal.
“As far as the project is concerned, the Chinese are quite comfortable as we are working with them all through the way on the arrangements that are being made for the repayment of this project.”
Dr. Alolo, however, could not give concrete timelines for the completion of various phases of the project because “the completion of each lot depends on the commencement of each lot.”
While he says publishing how much money has been drawn down for the project for Ghanaians to be updated is not the norm, Dr. Alolo noted that “if that is the suggestion, we can look at that as well.”
“When the Minister of Finance is reporting on these issues, he usually brings the information to Parliament, and it is made public as well.”
Background
In 2018, the government entered into a $2 billion Master Project Support Agreement with the Chinese state-run, Sinohydro Corporation Limited.
Under the deal, Sinohydro, a hydropower engineering and construction firm, will finance and execute the construction of infrastructural projects across the length and breadth of Ghana in exchange to have access to sites to mine bauxite.
The Atiwa forest was earmarked as the site to be exploited by the Chinese company for 15 years.
The first phase of the project is to cost $646.6 million, and begun with the Tamale Interchange project.
Parliament approved projects under 10 lots for the first phase of the project.
