24-Hour economy must be backed by strong demand – Oppong Nkrumah

The Member of Parliament for Ofoase-Ayirebi, Kojo Oppong Nkrumah, has argued that while Ghana’s proposed 24-hour economy is achievable, its success will depend largely on whether there is sufficient consumer demand to sustain it.

The policy, a flagship initiative of President John Dramani Mahama’s administration, is intended to encourage businesses to operate beyond traditional working hours. After extensive debate in Parliament, the 24-Hour Economy Authority Bill was approved, paving the way for the creation of an authority to coordinate and oversee implementation.

However, Mr Oppong Nkrumah has expressed reservations about the economic fundamentals underpinning the initiative. Speaking during an interview on TV3 on Sunday, February 22, 2026, the former Information Minister pointed to market realities that, in his view, cannot be ignored when designing such a policy.

Referring to a recent development involving GIHOC, he said, “GIHOC announced that they were doing 24-hours, a few moments later, the MD came back to say they are going to cut back on the 24-hour shift, because it did not make economic sense to run 24 hours.”

He suggested that policymakers must critically assess whether customers will actually transact outside the standard eight-hour business window. “Let’s go there to see whether indeed, there will be customers showing up off the 8-hour shift to do all these transactions they talk about.”

According to Mr Oppong Nkrumah, the concept of a 24-hour economy is not inherently flawed, but it must rest on strong economic foundations. “So, it is doable, but it must be premised on effective demand. When you have created an economy that has demand, you do not need to set up an authority to tell people to go and work 24-hours,” he stated.

He further illustrated his argument with a practical example: “If you run a cold store, and at 11:50 pm, there are people in front of your shop with cash in their hands, would you close your store? The other day in Parliament, we gave examples of cities that were running a 24-hour economy, but none of them set up an authority. You focus on creating the demand.”

His remarks add to the ongoing public debate about how the policy should be structured and implemented, particularly as government moves to operationalise the newly established authority.