Energy Commission launches Wiring Certification Guidelines

The Energy Commission has developed some guidelines to help electrical wiring and installation professionals in the performance of their work.

The Ghana Electrical Wiring Certification Guidelines have been developed in fulfillment of the provisions of Regulation 8 of the Electrical Wiring Regulation, Legislative Instrument 2008, which was passed by parliament in November 2011.

Dr Alfred Ofosu Ahenkorah, Executive Secretary of Energy Commission, said at the launch in Accra on Thursday that, the guidelines would help ensure the safety of lives and property.

He said the regulations provide answers to three basic questions including who qualifies to undertake electrical wiring in Ghana, and how does the qualified electrical wiring professional perform the wiring function.

“In most cases, the electricians are not trained, they lack the ability to distinguish between good and bad electrical cables, and perform their trade with any wire they lay hands on,” he said.

He said the most dangerous aspect of the activities of the unqualified electricians was the way and manner they perform the electrical wiring function.

Dr Ahenkorah said there were two classes of certification being issued including Certified Electrical Wiring Professional, and the Certified Electrical Wiring Inspector.

He said the certification would be given at three different levels,depending on the qualifications and experience of the wiring professional.

“The levels include, domestic, commercial and industrial electrical wiring and installation,” he said.

The executive secretary said the regulation also provided the wiring inspectors, who will periodically inspect old installations, to confirm the integrity of the installation.

John Abdulai Jinapor, Deputy Minister for Energy and Petroleum, expressed the hope that the regulations will bring sanity and discipline into the electrical wiring business.

He said it will also help eliminate quacks who have been engaging in shoddy and dangerous wiring, using inferior cables.

He said the ministry has directed the Electricity Company of Ghana to avoid connecting any private property, government building, to the grid unless they provide certification to show that the wiring job was undertaken by a qualified contractor.

He also appealed to the Energy Commission to conduct an audit on all government buildings to find out which ones needed re-wiring.

The minister called on Ghanaians to patronize made in Ghana cables, adding that, the ministry was developing a policy to compel all contractors to purchase locally made cables for wiring.