Claim: ESLA fund has accrued more than GH¢40 billion over the past 8 years
Source: Felix Kwakye Ofosu, Minister of State in charge of Government Communications
Verdict: True!
Researched by Samuel Nii Adjetey
The Minister of State in charge of Government Communications, Felix Kwakye Ofosu, claims that the Energy Sector Levies Act (ESLA) fund has accrued over 40 billion over the past eight years.
Speaking on GTV’s Breakfast Show on Friday, June 20, 2025, he said: “We left them [Akufo-Addo-led NPP government] a fund, ESLA, which accrued in excess of 40 billion Ghana cedis over an eight-year period.” (15:20-15:35 seconds)
Background
The Energy Sector Levies Act (ESLA), introduced in 2015, was created to consolidate energy-related levies in Ghana and address various energy sector debts, including power and fuel supply liabilities.
RelatedNews
Revenues generated under ESLA are crucial in stabilising and supporting the sector, but questions often arise regarding the amounts collected and management over time.
Fact-check
To verify the claim of over GH¢40 billion accrued in ESLA accounts over the past eight years, GhanaFact reviewed the Ministry of Finance’s annual reports on the Management of the Energy Sector Levies and Accounts from 2017 to 2024.
The investigation showed that the account has accrued GH¢41.1 billion between 2017 and 2023.
Energy Sector Levy collections from 2017 to 2024
| Year | Annual Collections (GH¢) |
|---|---|
| 2017 (pg. 11) | 3.2 billion |
| 2018 (pg. 3) | 3 billion |
| 2019 (pg. 1) | 3.8 billion |
| 2020 (pg. 48) | 4.5 billion |
| 2021 (pg. 3) | 6.3 billion |
| 2022 (pg. 3) | 6.7 billion |
| 2023 (pg. 26) | 5.7 billion |
| 2024 (pg. 10) | 8.7 billion |
| Total: | 41.1 billion |
Verdict
From the above, the claim suggesting ESLA accounts have accrued over GH¢40 billion as of January 2025 is True.
