Ghana’s 24-hour economy originated from long-term development plan – NDPC chairman

The government’s flagship 24-hour economy programme originated from Ghana’s long-term development plan, according to the chairman of the National Development Planning Committee, Dr Nii Moi Thompson.

Dr Thompson said the policy was among a small number of initiatives taken from the broader framework, even though the development plan itself was not enacted into law.

“Actually, the 24-hour economy came from the 48 Development Plan. It’s one of the few things that have actually come out of it,” he told Joy News’ PM Express on Wednesday.

The 24-hour economy is one of the NDC government’s central policy programmes and is intended to encourage businesses and public institutions to operate beyond conventional working hours.

However, Dr Thompson’s comments suggest that its policy foundations predate its adoption as a flagship initiative by the governing party.

He said the NDC selected the proposal from the long-term development framework after the wider plan failed to secure legislative backing.

“The 48 Development Plan, as in its entirety, should have been legislated, but it wasn’t,” he said.

“But the government, the NDC, removed that from the 48 Development Plan. So the 24-hour economy actually came from the 48 Development Plan.”

Dr Thompson said other government initiatives could also be traced to the framework.

He cited the naming of the Ministry of Sports and Recreation as one example.

“The name of the Ministry of Sports and Recreation came from the 48 Development Plan,” he said.

He also identified the proposed Ghana Agency for Development Cooperation as another initiative linked to the plan.

According to him, the agency is being developed jointly by the national planning body and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

“We have something known as the Ghana Agency for Development Cooperation, which is currently being developed between NDPs and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, to help form soft power for Ghana and Global Affairs,” he said.

Dr Thompson also offered a positive assessment of the work undertaken so far to implement the 24-hour economy.

He said those responsible for the programme had made progress in attracting investments involving businesses of different sizes.

“From the perspective of those who came up with the idea, I think they’ve done pretty well,” he said.

“You have to understand that they are operating across a spectrum of businesses, from small to large.”

He did not, in the supplied material, identify the investments secured, the participating companies or the number of jobs created under the programme.