The National Communications Officer of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), Sammy Gyamfi has outlined the party’s vision for Ghana’s economic transformation through the implementation of a 24-hour economy strategy.
“The 24-hour economy is a deliberate strategy by the NDC to create an enabling environment and provide the necessary incentives for private businesses and certain critical state institutions to be able to operate 24/7 round the clock in three shifts of 8 hours each for the purpose of transforming Ghana into an import substitution export led economy,” Gyamfi stated during an interview with Johnnie Hughes on the 3FM Sunrise Morning Show on February 21.
He emphasized, “For the purpose of enhancing public services for the people of this country and for the purpose more importantly of creating decent, sustainable, well-paying jobs, that is what it’s about.”
He explained the comprehensive strategy, stating, “And we are not just going to operate 24/7, we are going to operate three shifts, if somebody is going to work more than 28 hours beyond one shifts, you are going to be paid over time, which will be more expensive than the regular pay you pay the person per hour.”
Furthermore, Gyamfi addressed the security aspect, saying, “We are going to have a special security architecture for this, made up of the state security agencies and private security companies. And we are going to recruit young people to be part of this security architecture to provide security, for the various business, districts, and for companies that would sign on to the 24-hour economy policy.”
Regarding electricity tariffs, Mr Gyamfi explained, “We are going to give them cheaper electricity, through what we call the time of use tariffs. So, companies will have special meters, time of use meters calibrated to charge them a cheaper rate for power they consume in the night. ”
He also discussed procurement, stating, “On the issues of demand, we have said that we are going to stimulate demand by using the procurement power of the government. Government is the biggest spender in the economy.”
The NDC’s proposal for a 24-hour economy represents a significant shift in economic policy, aiming to harness Ghana’s potential for round-the-clock productivity and sustainable development.
By Joselyn Kafui Nyadzi