President Mahama cuts sod for 24-hour economy market in Assin North, announces hospital and school upgrades
President John Dramani Mahama has cut the sod for the construction of a 24-hour economy market at Assin Breku in the Assin North District, as the government begins rolling out its flagship market infrastructure programme across districts nationwide.
The President said the market was part of a broader effort to ensure money circulated within local economies, connecting farmers and producers directly to buyers and creating jobs for young people across the country.
“Trade is essential in every economy. When a farmer cultivates and harvests, he must take his produce to a place where buyers can also purchase,” President Mahama said.
Parliament has approved the 24-hour economy programme, and the President said the government would begin registering youth for opportunities the initiative would create. He said most countries already ran 24-hour economies and that Ghana’s adoption of the model would open up employment for the country’s large youth population.
The Assin North facility will include lockable shops, open market spaces for traders who cannot afford enclosed stalls, a cold store, a restaurant, abattoirs and butchers’ shops, a bank, a warehouse, a clinic, a pharmacy, washrooms, a waste treatment plant, a police post, a fire service post and a lorry station.
President Mahama also announced a change in how contractors on government projects would be paid, saying the administration was moving away from the practice of paying 15 percent mobilisation fees upfront to contractors before work began.
He told the gathering that 80 percent of the District Assemblies Common Fund was now being transferred directly to the assemblies, up from less than 42 percent under the previous administration, giving districts the resources to drive development in their own communities.
Turning to healthcare, the President announced that the Agenda 111 hospital project in Assin North was among 35 selected across the country for completion this year. He said the previous administration had started the projects at various locations but ran out of funds, leaving them at different stages of completion. Government had identified those nearest to completion and committed to finishing them in 2025.
President Mahama also redeemed a campaign pledge on education, announcing that Assin State College would receive one of 30 E-Blocks the government was constructing across the country, upgrading the status of the institution as he had promised ahead of the 2024 elections.
The President said the package of investments in Assin North, spanning the market, the hospital and the school, reflected the administration’s commitment to developing every part of the country and ensuring all Ghanaians had access to quality infrastructure, economic opportunities and improved livelihoods.
He also used the occasion to speak about the state of the economy, telling the gathering that Ghana had moved from 11th to 8th largest economy in Africa since his administration took office, with the cedi gaining strength after a period of sharp depreciation. He said the economy had proven resilient even in the face of recent global tensions.
“Happenings in the world used to affect our economy, but by the grace of God, even the recent tensions with Iran did not really affect us,” President Mahama said.
Richard Aniagyei, ISD
