The Mahama government’s projected 24-hour economy policy has drawn criticism from former Finance Minister Dr. Mohammed Amin Adam, who claims that the 2025 Budget lacks a clear plan for implementing it.
A key campaign pledge was the policy, which aimed to increase productivity in all industries and generate jobs. Dr. Amin Adam, however, argues that although the program is mentioned in the budget, no specific plan or financial support is provided to help carry it out.
“You take the budget and look at it, there were only references to the 24-hour economy. There’s no programme on the implementation of the 24-hour economy. And once there’s no programme on the implementation, it would mean that there’s no allocation of funds towards the implementation,” he stated during an interview on The Point of View with Bernard Avle on Channel One TV on Monday, March 17.
He also questioned Finance Minister Dr. Ato Forson’s promise that the project would be started later in 2025, stating that the plan is still unachievable in the absence of funding.
“The finance minister said they would launch it later this year, but even if you launch it and there’s no allocation, how do you even implement that? Are you going to launch and wait till 2026, when you have to make allocation to really implement the 24-hour economy? So, this is deceptive as far as job creation is concerned,” he argued.
The comments made by Dr. Amin Adam contribute to the continuing discussions concerning the feasibility of the 24-hour economy policy and its possible effects on Ghana’s economic expansion.
