The Public Utilities Regulatory Commission (PURC) is encouraging the public to use its electricity consumption estimator app to address concerns over incorrect meter charges.
This comes in response to numerous complaints from electricity consumers about unusually high readings on newly installed ECG meters.
The PURC said this when it hosted a delegation from the Gambia Public Utilities Regulatory Authority (PURA) on Monday, November 11.
This visit was part of the Commission’s efforts to strengthen regulatory partnerships and engage with sister regulatory institutions as it aims to be a model utility regulatory institution in Africa.
PURA is a multi-sector regulatory body with mandates to regulate telecommunications, energy, downstream petroleum, and water and sewage services in the Gambia. PURA identified PURC as an ideal institution to learn from regarding regional best practices.
The Executive Secretary of the PURC, Dr Ishmael Ackah, emphasised that the Commission’s use of technology to resolve regulatory issues has attracted interest from other countries eager to learn from Ghana’s PURC model.
“We believe that when it comes to using technology to become an effective regulator, PURC has taken the lead, and these are some of the things we are sharing with them. They are happy with what we have given them so far.”
Dr Ackah also highlighted the importance of the electricity consumption app, which helps consumers calculate their usage and address overcharging concerns as the Commission works to resolve ongoing complaints.
“We are engaging the utilities, and we have also sent our regulators around to test some of the meters to check whether they are in line. We have what we call the electricity consumption estimator. It has pictures of fans, light bulbs and all. You just connect to get an estimate of how much you use. So, we need to intensify that education.”
On his part, Chairman of the Board of Directors of PURA, Alieu Momodou Ngum, explained that Ghana’s PURC serves as a model to emulate.
“We are going through a process of repositioning PURA, and we identified Ghana as one of the best places to come, given the successes they have achieved. Our mission is to learn from PURC,” he said.
Ngum further noted that PURC would play an instrumental role in helping PURA strengthen its services for the people of Gambia.
“Electricity and water are two major utilities PURA is regulating, particularly for electricity and water. It is active thinking of unbundling the entities and I think we can learn a lot in our discussions and collaborations with PURC to serve the People of Gambia,” he said.
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