Dr. Shafic Suleiman
The Western and Western North office of the Public Utilities Regulatory Commission (PURC) achieved an impressive complaint resolution rate of 96.12 percent during the first quarter of 2026.
As of March 31, 2026, the regional office had received a total of 439 complaints.
The majority of the complaints were filed against utility service providers, with only a small fraction initiated by the utility companies themselves against consumers.
Out of the total recorded, 422 complaints were successfully resolved within the first quarter, reflecting a high level of responsiveness and operational efficiency by the Commission.
According to the Commission, complaints about the operations of the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) were the highest.
A total of 419 complaints, representing 95.44 percent, were lodged against ECG.
Complaints lodged against Ghana Water Limited (GWL) numbered 17, representing 3.87 percent of the total. However, three complaints were filed by utility service providers against consumers during the same period.
The Commission noted in a statement that WhatsApp remained the predominant channel for lodging complaints. It said 380 complaints were received through WhatsApp, accounting for 86.56 percent of the total.
“Phone calls constituted the second most utilised channel, accounting for 8.43 percent, followed by written correspondence, which recorded 3.19 percent of the complaints received,” the statement added.
It said Consumer Service Committee referrals and walk-in visits were the least utilised channels, recording 1.14 percent and 0.68 percent respectively.
Complaint Categories
The statement said analysis of the complaint categories revealed that quality of service issues dominated, with 403 complaints recorded.
“This was followed by billing-related concerns, unlawful disconnection, metering, damage to property and consumer service delivery issues,” the statement indicated.
It added that the prominence of service quality complaints highlighted the need for continued improvement in reliability and customer experience by utility providers.
Industrial and SME Monitoring
The regional office embarked on a first-quarter monitoring exercise covering 11 industries and small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).
The initiative was aimed at evaluating the standard of service delivered to selected establishments by ECG and GWL.
Community Monitoring
The Commission, as part of its regulatory mandate, also carried out community monitoring exercises and undertook similar exercises in some district offices of the regulated utilities in the Western and Western North regions.
From Emmanuel Opoku, Takoradi