Ghana’s flagship 24-Hour Economy policy initiative is facing questions over its direction and consistency, with economist and Executive Director of the Centre for Policy Scrutiny (CPS), Dr. Adu Owusu Sarkodie, arguing that what government promised, what its policy document proposes and what is currently being implemented are three different things.
He says the initiative appears to have lost touch with its original promise, raising concerns about whether government has a clear and consistent roadmap for delivering the jobs and economic transformation Ghanaians were promised.
Speaking on the initiative in an interview monitored by The High Street Journal, Dr. Adu Sarkodie challenged the Ministry of Finance to first account for the employments he inherited from the previous government.
In addition, he wants the ministry to also demonstrate how many jobs it has been able to create since assuming office.
The manifesto promise: One job, Three shifts, Three people
According to Dr. Sarkodie, the 24-Hour Economy promise, captured on page 102 of the NDC manifesto, was built around the 1:3:3 concept: one job, three shifts and three people.
The idea was to extend business operations across three shifts, creating employment opportunities for three different people to occupy one job position.
This was preceded by the party’s youth manifesto, which also promised to create more employment opportunities for young people.
However, Dr. Sarkodie argues that the number of jobs created under the initiative so far remains difficult to verify, insisting that government must provide a clear account of its employment performance rather than simply announce achievements.
The Policy Document: Economic Transformation Takes Centre Stage
The economist also questioned the extent to which the original employment model features in government’s implementation framework. He disclosed that CPS thoroughly reviewed the 287-page 24-Hour Economy and Accelerated Export Development Programme document presented by the secretariat.
According to him, the 1:3:3 concept appears only once, on page 81, while much of the document focuses on broader economic transformation.
Although he commended the secretariat for its detailed interrogation of Ghana’s economic challenges and proposed solutions, he questioned why the original employment promise appears to have taken a back seat.
On The Ground: Markets Instead of the Original Promise?
Dr. Sarkodie further questioned the direction of implementation, pointing to the construction of 24-hour markets across the country.
He argued that the manifesto promise, the secretariat’s policy document and government’s activities on the ground appear to represent three different approaches.
For him, this is more than a difference in presentation. It raises fundamental questions about policy direction, accountability and whether implementation is delivering the original promise.
Ultimately, he believes that Ghanaians need more than buildings and announcements. They need clarity on the programme’s objectives, measurable employment outcomes and evidence that the initiative is delivering the economic transformation it was designed to achieve.
