The Association of Ghana Industries (AGI) has urged the government to move beyond slogans and focus on concrete policies and programmes to make Ghana’s 24-hour economy a reality.
AGI Chief Executive Officer, Seth Twum Akwaboah, said the success of the flagship policy should not be judged by the popularity of its name, but by the practical measures being implemented to transform the economy.
Speaking on Joy News’ PM Express Business Edition, Mr Akwaboah said the focus should be on the quality of policy development, stakeholder consultation and the specific interventions required to change the status quo.
“For me, I don’t bother so much about the clichés you create, whether it is 24-Hour Economy or 1D1F; that’s not really the issue for me. It is more of what you do within those policies,” he said.
He said governments could introduce ambitious policies, but their effectiveness would ultimately depend on how they were designed and implemented.
“You can come up with any policy, but then, when you develop the policy, what has gone into the policy development? How consultative was its nature? What are the key policies or activities within the policy that you are trying to implement to change the status quo?” he asked.
His comments come as the government continues efforts to operationalise its 24-hour economy policy, which seeks to expand economic activity beyond traditional working hours and create more opportunities for businesses and workers.
Policy Becoming Clearer
Mr Akwaboah acknowledged that the 24-hour economy initiative was initially unclear to businesses and other stakeholders, but said engagements with the government have provided greater clarity.
“I think we are making good progress because now it’s coming clearer. Government is defining,” he said.
He, however, cautioned against expectations that the policy would transform the economy overnight.
“When you hear a cliché, when you hear a mention of something like that, sometimes the expectation is that overnight things will change and everything will be a 24-hour economy. It doesn’t happen like that,” he explained.
Drawing a comparison with the previous government’s One District, One Factory (1D1F) initiative, the AGI CEO said announcing a policy was only the beginning of the process.
“All of a sudden, you think that every district is going to have an industry? Government has mentioned it. It’s an intention. It’s a vision. How do we work towards it?” he said.
Focus on Implementation
According to Mr Akwaboah, the government must now identify and implement the specific activities, programmes and policies required to turn the 24-hour economy vision into tangible economic gains.
“But then we need to define the specific activities and policies and programs we are going to do to make that happen,” he said.
He noted that the launch of a blueprint for the initiative represents progress and said it contains several ideas that could significantly transform economic activity if properly implemented.
“And gradually they are coming to that point where now they’ve launched a blueprint, and then in it there are a lot of interesting ideas. If we’re able to implement it to the letter, I’m sure it will help change a lot of things,” he said.
Mr Akwaboah reaffirmed the AGI’s support for the policy, saying the association is engaging with the 24-hour economy secretariat on its implementation.
“So for me, I embrace it just as we embraced the 1D1F, AGI embraces the 24-hour economy, and we are working with government,” he said.
“We are working with the 24-hour economy secretariat to implement some of the things they said they will implement. If we’re able to do it, it will be a game changer,” he added.
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