Former President John Dramani Mahama has been leading a clarion call for Ghana to adopt a 24-hour economy policy, an efficient way of driving economic growth and increasing productivity in all spheres. At a public forum on national development, Mahama insisted that the expansion of business operations into the night could add so much to increasing the nation's economic output while creating jobs and an improved business climate.
Mahama said this policy would therefore benefit key industries like retail, manufacturing, hospitality, and services. He argued that with this, Ghana is likely to see more foreign investment, while increasing local consumption and thereby reduce unemployment by keeping businesses open around the clock.
"It will not only mean a high level of economic activity but will also encourage a culture of hard work and innovation continuously," Mahama said. He referred to examples from around the world where countries like China and South Korea have used 24-hour operations to develop their economies. Mahama believes that this ambitious policy could be perfectly anchored on the youthful population and a growing middle class in Ghana.
He also stated that the former President went on to impress upon the audience the complementary role that infrastructural improvements would play in the transition to a 24-hour economy, including adequate energy supplies, better transportation networks, and improved security mechanisms to guarantee safety in night operations.
He explained that this would give, for the twin effects of increasing volumes of trade, a resultant increase in GDP growth. It could also spur domestic industries to work without constraints on time, achieve quicker turnaround in both production and delivery.
Mahama agreed that security and reliability of energy, among others, will have to be worked on to enable the country to actually realize this dream, and he appealed to the government to view their handling of these challenges in the context of long-term solutions to ensure the 24-hour economy grew sustainably.
His intention to have a 24-hour economy has the potential to unleash the full capacity of Ghana's workforce to be productive and make Ghana a player able to compete in the global economy.
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