Accra, March 3, 2026 – Ghana’s nuclear power programme is facing a major institutional hurdle as no nuclear regulatory instruments have been passed by Parliament in nearly a decade, a Ghana News Agency investigation has found.
The absence of these regulations leaves a critical gap in the country’s legal framework, despite sustained international support and technical preparations toward nuclear power generation.
At the centre of the issue is the Nuclear Regulatory Authority (NRA), which is mandated to oversee radiation protection, licensing, and enforcement to safeguard human health and the environment. While the Nuclear Regulatory Authority Act provides the legal basis for its establishment, it requires complementary regulations to operationalise its licensing and compliance functions.
Sources close to the regulatory process indicated that draft instruments developed over several years have yet to complete the mandatory legal review by the Attorney-General’s Department prior to submission to Parliament.
An official at the Authority confirmed that nine draft regulations had been submitted to the Attorney-General’s Department, with seven finalised. The drafts are reportedly before Parliament’s Subsidiary Legislation Committee for consideration, but none has been formally laid for approval.
The regulatory vacuum comes as Ghana transitions into Phase Two of its nuclear power programme, described as the “construction readiness” stage.
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) identifies a legally enforceable regulatory framework as essential for licensing, safety oversight and investor assurance. In its milestones for developing national infrastructure for nuclear power, regulatory frameworks are listed among the 19 key issues and ranked seventh in importance.
Energy and legal experts caution that even where regulatory templates are adapted from other jurisdictions, they must be domesticated and enacted under Ghanaian law to attain binding effect.
Ghana’s nuclear roadmap has already seen timeline adjustments, with the initial target of commissioning nuclear power by 2029 now projected for the mid-2030s.
Parliamentary sources confirmed that no new nuclear-related legislative instruments have been passed in recent years, although discussions on strengthening the regulatory regime were held toward the close of the 8th Parliament.
Analysts maintain that without a fully operational regulatory framework, progress toward plant construction and eventual operation may remain constrained.
GHBUSS
March 3, 2026
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