The Government will name Ecobank Development Corporation (EDC) as consultants for the re-engagement process with Vodafone.

EDC, which is the investment wing of the Ecobank Group, will work with a team yet to be named to re-engage Vodafone over the sale of 70 percent shares of Ghana Telecom.

Government sources say EDC, together with the team, will examine the sales and purchase agreement (SPA) to find out where the state was shortchanged and make recommendations.

Incidentally, EDC is no stranger to GT issues as it was government’s transaction advisor when the decision was taken to sell part of Ghana Telecom. That process was however truncated.

Meanwhile the Communications Minister, Haruna Iddrisu is expected later Tuesday to name members of the team that will engage Vodafone over the sale agreement.

Government’s decision to re-engage the UK-based company follows a review report which raised a barrage of issues with the SPA.

The President-Mills-appointed commission which investigated the transaction aside questioning what it said was the former president’s interference with the negotiation also mentioned several irregularities, thus necessitating a re-engagement of the majority shareholder.

It is not known what the terms of the re-engagement are, especially regarding the ownership of the fibre optic backbone.

Vodafone, in a recent statement issued in Accra, has however indicated strongly that it has over the last few months invested substantially in the fibre optic backbone, sending signals it must hold on to the infrastructure.


Source: Joy Business/Myjoyonline.com/Ghana
*Fiifi Koomson contributed reporting