Use budget to implement 24-hour economy in phases – Prof Bokpin

Professor Godfred Alufar Bokpin, an Economist, has proposed a phased implementation of the Government’s flagship 24-hour economy policy, backed by a dedicated yearly allocation in the national budget. Prof Bokpin said doing so would provide a binding framework for effective implementation, shifting the programme from a political promise to a national scheme that would deliver better outcomes. The professor of finance at the University of Ghana Business School (UGBS) spoke exclusively with the Ghana News Agency in Accra on Tuesday, arguing that the current structure lacked design, financial backing, and an enforceable framework.

“The way to carry it out is to segment it and say it will be implemented in phases through the budget. Each phase should be clearly expressed in the budget with ministerial responsibility,” Prof Bokpin said. Launched in July 2025, the 24-hour economy policy was designed to create an economy that operates around the clock, making Ghana self‑reliant and export‑driven through multisectoral productivity and industrialisation, while creating jobs.

In a July update, the 24-Hour Economy and Accelerated Export Development Secretariat said about 268 filling stations and 33 manufacturers were running the intended 1-3-3 shift system, creating more than 160,000 direct jobs. The Secretariat said the initiative has also signed a US$5.5 billion project, within a project pipeline of US$11.5bn, including the Buipe solar and battery project and Kambonwule oil palm complex, targeting 133,000 jobs. The other projects – the bioenergy programme at Buipe and Damanko- were expected to create 30,000 jobs and save the country about US$450 million a year in foreign exchange and generate export earnings.

Assessing implementation over the past 15 months, Prof Bokpin noted that the government produced no substantial paper that could be referenced to assess its performance against the promised three-shift system. He argued that the diagnosis and some recommendations under the policy were good but came across as a campaign promise rather than a well-thought-out programme of government, advocating sectoral integration. “The 24-hour economy policy was not a programme that was going to be binding on government.

The design and all of that was not properly costed and structured for implementation,” he said. “The only means by which political manifestos find expression i… Professor Godfred Alufar Bokpin, an Economist, has urged the government to shift from aggressive expenditure cuts to job-led growth to sustain economic stability and promote inclusive development.

He said excessive spending cuts risked undermining economic growth without creating decent jobs or attracting the investment needed to drive inclusive development. Speaking exclusively to the Ghana News Agency (GNA) in Accra, Prof Bokpin, of the University of Ghana Business School (UGBS), said the government had shifted from revenue-based to expenditure-based fiscal consolidation since 2025, helping to stabilise the economy. He said Ghana had achieved debt sustainability almost three years ahead of the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) 2028 programme target, supported by fiscal consolidation and the strengthening of the cedi.