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The involvement of Indian billionaire Mukesh Ambani in Ghana’s 5G spectrum acquisition has stirred significant controversy, particularly among the National Democratic Congress (NDC), the minority caucus in the country’s parliament.
The NDC has voiced serious concerns over the Ghanaian government’s decision to grant 5G spectrum rights to Ambani’s Next Gen Infraco Company Limited for a period of 10 to 15 years, criticizing the lack of transparency in the process.
“After a preliminary study of the processes leading to this opaque transaction, the minority caucus believes that the Next Gen Infraco 5G deal is detrimental to the national interest,” the caucus stated in a release.
This development follows the announcement by the Minister of Communication and Digitalisation, Ursula Owusu-Ekuful, two months ago that Ghana would launch 5G mobile technology in September 2024.
Under the terms of the deal, Next Gen Infraco Limited has been granted exclusive rights to build, own, and operate the entire 5G infrastructure network across Ghana, a nation of 33 million people.
The minority caucus contended that the agreement lacked fairness and transparency and bypassed the necessary vetting processes. They argued that a more competitive bidding process could have yielded significantly higher returns for the country, estimating potential revenues between $400 million to $500 million, compared to the agreed sum of $125 million payable over 10 years.
Moreover, the deal gives Next Gen Infraco a monopoly over wholesale 5G mobile data and voice services in Ghana for the next decade. The company will control 62.5% of every data/voice bundle package sold, with only 7.5% going to the government and 30% to Mobile Network Operators (MNOs) and Internet Service Providers (ISPs).
The NDC questioned why the Ghanaian government would marginalize existing MNOs like MTN, AirtelTigo, and TELECEL, and ISPs, forcing them to route their services through Next Gen Infraco.
Recently, Mukesh Ambani announced that Radisys Corp., a subsidiary of Ambani-controlled Reliance Industries Ltd., will provide network infrastructure, applications, and smartphones for Ghana-based Next Gen Infraco. The company plans to commence operations by the end of the year, offering 5G broadband services to mobile operators and ISPs in Ghana.
The NDC also noted that the contract with Next Gen Infraco did not receive parliamentary approval, which they assert is required under Section 33 of the Public Financial Management Act 2016 (Act 921).
“The Akufo-Addo/Bawumia government is nearly finalizing this deal without parliamentary oversight, rendering the transaction unlawful, null, void, and of no legal effect whatsoever,” the NDC’s statement emphasized.
The caucus further highlighted the involvement of entities with dubious track records in the consortium benefiting from the deal, suggesting potential cronyism and conflicts of interest. They claimed that some of these entities are linked to President Akufo-Addo and the Minister for Communications, involved in previous arrangements that failed to deliver value for money.
In comparison, Nigeria has been progressively rolling out 5G services since 2022. MTN Nigeria launched commercial 5G operations in September 2022 across several major cities, followed by Mafab Communications and Airtel Nigeria in subsequent months, with plans to expand nationwide.
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