Mr Alan Kyerematen, leader of the Movement for Change, has called on the government to establish a US$2-billion market infrastructure development fund to serve as a sustainable solution to financing the development of modern market infrastructure across the country and revitalize commerce and distributive trade.
After witnessing the recent fire devastation at the Kantamanto Market, he suggested that the proposed fund should be seeded with an initial capitalization of GH¢500 million and supplemented with contributions from the corporate private sector.
To encourage their participation, he proposed that donations to the fund should be tax-deductible, making it financially advantageous for businesses to support the initiative.
“The corporate private sector either directly or indirectly benefits from market operations or must play an active role in building resilient infrastructure to sustain it,” he stated.
Mr. Kyerematen highlighted the broader economic benefits of modernized markets, particularly their role in controlling inflation as vibrant retail market activities stabilized prices by improving the distribution of goods, essential to ensuring the affordability of essential products.
He emphasized that market modernization was not just a commercial necessity, but an economic imperative for improving livelihoods and national development.
He proposed that Metropolitan, Municipal, and District Assemblies (MMDAs) should allocate a fixed percentage of their market toll revenues to the fund to ensure consistent financial inflows to support the establishment of modern market facilities in all 260 districts.
Such infrastructure, he noted, would create safer and more efficient trading environments, protecting both lives and property while enhancing economic productivity.
On the potential impact, Mr. Kyerematen described the fund as a mechanism for stimulating small businesses and creating wealth as modern markets would offer improved facilities for traders and expand economic opportunities for small-scale entrepreneurs and reduce unemployment.
He said outcomes would strengthen domestic trade and form the foundation for broader economic transformation.
Mr. Kyerematen reminded stakeholders to adopt proactive measures to prevent such disasters and stressed that his proposed solution would safeguard against future tragedies and position Ghana’s markets as hubs of innovation and growth.
“We owe it to the traders and the entire economy to build market infrastructure that is not only modern but also safe and sustainable,” he said.
Nonetheless, experts have advised business owners to insure their businesses to avoid such situations and risks, also, insurance companies have been advised to provide flexible insurance coverage for small holder companies or businesses to mitigated these shocks.
