The Chartered Institute of Project Analysts and Consultants (CIPAC) has expressed concerns about the financing architecture of Ghana's GH₵30 billion Big Push programme, specifically the Accra-Kumasi Expressway project. According to CIPAC Fellow Amo Agyapong, the programme's financing arrangements must be resilient to fluctuations in extractive sector revenues. The Accra-Kumasi corridor is a crucial economic artery, linking major commercial, industrial, agricultural, and population centres.
The GH₵30 billion commitment is significant, with high expectations surrounding the project's potential to improve connectivity, reduce travel time and transport costs, facilitate trade and investment, create employment, and unlock economic opportunities. However, CIPAC emphasizes that projects of this magnitude require comprehensive financial risk management, especially given the volatility of extractive revenues. Mineral royalties and petroleum-related receipts can provide valuable resources for financing development infrastructure, but these revenues are inherently unpredictable.
Ghana's extractive sector is a major contributor to government revenue and the broader economy, with gold being a leading source of export earnings and petroleum revenues contributing to the national budget. However, exchange rate movements can affect the cedi value of revenues and expenditure, creating a fundamental project-financing challenge. CIPAC warns that if actual extractive revenue receipts are lower than forecast, a revenue shortfall could result in delayed payments, slower construction, contractor claims, increased financing costs, or the need to reallocate resources from other priority areas.
CIPAC proposes contingency measures, including the institutionalization of a contingency reserve specifically designed to protect major strategic infrastructure from revenue volatility. During periods of revenue underperformance, the reserve could be accessed under clearly defined conditions to maintain critical project commitments. The reserve should operate under strict rules, with clear eligibility criteria, withdrawal triggers, reporting requirements, and independent oversight.
CIPAC urges the government to use realistic revenue assumptions when preparing annual and medium-term budgets and to independently review project costs. Procurement should be competitive and transparent, with contracts containing appropriate risk-allocation mechanisms. Cost and schedule performance should be monitored continuously, and project-level financial information should be available to Parliament and the public.
CIPAC argues that Ghana's experience with natural-resource revenues demonstrates the importance of planning beyond periods of high commodity prices. Major infrastructure programmes should incorporate counter-cyclical fiscal management principles to ensure that infrastructure investment is maintained at sustainable levels across the commodity cycle. The objective is to prevent the country from having to choose between protecting strategic infrastructure and meeting other essential public obligations when extractive revenues underperform.
Ultimately, the success of the GH₵30 billion Big Push programme should be measured by whether it generates durable infrastructure and measurable economic value. For the Accra-Kumasi Expressway, success should mean creating an efficient economic corridor that supports trade, reduces logistics costs, improves mobility, and contributes to broader economic productivity. CIPAC emphasizes that the GH₵30 billion figure should be understood as part of a long-term national investment strategy.
Key points
- CIPAC proposes a contingency reserve to protect the Accra-Kumasi Expressway project from revenue volatility.
- The reserve should operate under strict rules with clear eligibility criteria and independent oversight.
- Ghana's experience with natural-resource revenues highlights the importance of planning beyond periods of high commodity prices.
