Policy think tank IMANI Africa is calling on Ghana’s Parliament to adopt a bold ten-year legislative framework, termed “24H+ Vision 2035”, to fast-track the country’s 24-hour economy ambitions while strategically aligning with India’s long-term development strategy, Vision 2047.
The proposal envisions a medium-term development plan that spans from 2025 to 2035 and offers a clear legislative and fiscal path toward three national productivity pillars: Grow24, focused on expanding agro-processing parks; Make24, which seeks to scale up continuous-operation manufacturing zones; and Build24, centered on building round-the-clock infrastructure and sustainable energy systems.
IMANI argues that this framework would not only drive structural transformation in Ghana but also make the country a meaningful partner in India’s goal to become a fully developed economy by its 100th year of independence.
At the heart of the recommendation is the creation of a dedicated parliamentary coordination subcommittee, which would serve as the legislative engine behind the 24-hour economy reforms. This body would be responsible for co-drafting key bills, including a Shift Work Regulation Act to support rotating eight-hour work cycles, and a Time-of-Use Tariff Law that could help reduce electricity costs during off-peak hours by up to 40 percent.
The subcommittee would also be expected to review and propose annual amendments to Ghana’s appropriations bill to protect strategic funding, particularly concessional lines of credit, from the Ghana Exim Bank and other long-term finance sources.
IMANI’s policy brief frames the Ghana-India Parliamentary Friendship Society as a critical institutional platform for advancing South–South cooperation. The think tank notes that India has already committed over USD 450 million in concessional financing to Ghana, while bilateral trade has grown to over USD 3.1 billion in 2024–25.
Gold and cocoa dominate Ghana’s exports, while Indian exports to Ghana include pharmaceuticals, ICT products, and heavy machinery. Indian private investment has also been robust, with more than 800 projects in Ghana totaling nearly USD 2 billion over the past three decades.
What is now needed, IMANI insists, is a shift from ad hoc agreements to structured, demand-driven cooperation embedded in legislative architecture. In this vision, Ghanaian and Indian lawmakers would work collaboratively to establish oversight mechanisms, enforce public transparency, and benchmark development progress through clear targets such as job creation, export volumes, and energy reliability.
To strengthen implementation, IMANI suggests constituency-level consultations to allow local voices, particularly farmers, SMEs, and youth groups, to shape project design. The proposal also recommends the establishment of a Private-Sector Liaison Cell within Parliament to connect Ghanaian small and medium enterprises with large Indian corporations interested in entering the market, supported by parliamentary guarantees on land, customs, and permits.
In terms of capacity-building, the roadmap includes provisions for an annual fellowship that would send Ghanaian parliamentary legal drafters to India’s legislative service to gain hands-on experience in negotiating infrastructure contracts and drafting policy.
Biannual study tours for Members of Parliament to India’s 24-hour Special Economic Zones would expose Ghanaian legislators to best practices in logistics, energy efficiency, and stakeholder engagement.
To institutionalize financing and ensure long-term viability, IMANI is proposing a Joint Appropriation Act that would commit Ghana to co-financing major infrastructure projects with India. Under the plan, Ghana would match every dollar of Indian Exim Bank finance with twenty-five cents of domestic funding, signaling strong national ownership and attracting complementary capital from development partners and private investors.
According to Imani, if these joint initiatives, from legislation and finance to private sector partnerships and capacity exchange, are implemented in an integrated and accountable manner, Ghana’s 24-hour economy drive can be both accelerated and made sustainable.
