Accra: Mr Kwaku Osei-Sarpong, Founder of CIPA Holdings Group, has called for innovative financial solutions to overcome Ghana's longstanding challenges in green infrastructure financing. He emphasized that Ghana's net-zero ambitions would succeed or fail depending on how effectively the country mobilizes and structures capital. Mr Osei-Sarpong was speaking at the 2025 Energy Sustainability and Leadership Conference (ESLC) in Accra. The Conference convened policymakers, private sector leaders, and climate finance experts to discuss Ghana's pathway to a sustainable energy future.
According to Ghana News Agency, Mr Osei-Sarpong, who is the recipient of the Rising Star of the Year award at the 2024 Ghana Energy Awards, highlighted the structural challenges facing Ghana's financial market. These challenges began with the government's limited fiscal space under IMF programme constraints, which reduced its ability to fund large-scale projects. He pointed out that commercial banks, with lending rates ranging between 20-30 per cent in Ghana cedis and 7-12 per cent in USD financing from DFIs, offered short repayment tenors that were ill-suited for climate-sensitive investments.
The CEO stated that the lack of patient capital required to support the 'triple bottom line' nature of green projects-balancing people, planet, and profit-was compounding the issue. He stressed that these bottlenecks had slowed progress on renewable energy, electromobility, and public infrastructure, despite Ghana's abundant potential. One of the most urgent points raised was the underutilization of domestic capital pools. Ghanaian pension funds, which collectively manage billions of cedis, currently invest heavily in government bonds and low-risk treasuries. Similarly, the Ghana Stock Exchange had yet to fully embrace green bonds and ESG-linked instruments as mainstream financing tools.
Mr Osei-Sarpong proposed several practical models to help Ghana close its green financing gap, including project finance via special purpose vehicles (SPVs), blended finance, lease-to-own and PAYGO models, green bonds, carbon finance, and mobilizing pension funds. He noted that these strategies would shift green financing from a constraint to Ghana's competitive advantage. He emphasized that CIPA Holdings Group had established itself as a trusted partner to governments, DFIs, and private investors, with a reputation for structuring climate-resilient projects that align with national development priorities and global sustainability targets.
Mr Seth Mahu Agbeve, Director of the Renewable Energy and Green Transition Directorate at the Ministry of Energy and Green Transition, reiterated the importance of integrating renewable energy and ESG standards. He warned that companies failing to do so risked obsolescence with tightening global trade rules. He outlined the Ministry's plans to establish a Renewable Energy Authority and launch a $3.4 billion Renewable Energy Action Plan, focusing on net metering, EV charging, solar street lighting, and utility-scale renewables.