{"id":68511,"date":"2025-07-02T16:51:02","date_gmt":"2025-07-02T16:51:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/?p=68511"},"modified":"2025-07-02T16:51:02","modified_gmt":"2025-07-02T16:51:02","slug":"24-hour-economy-heres-where-the-idea-came-from","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/?p=68511","title":{"rendered":"24-Hour Economy: Here\u2019s where the idea came from"},"content":{"rendered":"
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President John Dramani Mahama has traced the roots of Ghana\u2019s 24-hour economy initiative to deep reflection and lessons learned from his previous term in office, describing it as a transformative response to the country\u2019s economic challenges and a blueprint for inclusive growth.<\/p>\n

Speaking at the official launch of the 24-hour economy policy in Accra, President Mahama revealed that the vision emerged from Ghana\u2019s long-standing struggle with an imbalanced economic model\u2014exporting raw materials cheaply while importing expensive refined goods.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo what are the origins of the 24-hour vision? The visions behind the 24-hour economy and the Accelerated Export Development Programme was born from reflection during and after my previous term in office,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cBetween 2016 and 2020, it became increasingly clear that Ghana, like many African countries, is trapped in a model of unequal exchange. We export raw materials and we import refined finished products. We ship cocoa, gold, timber and oil abroad only to repurchase them as chocolate, jewellery, furniture and fuel at a far greater cost.\u201d<\/p>\n

President Mahama was unflinching in his critique of this outdated system.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis model does not serve our people. It has never served our people. It generates foreign jobs, it fuels foreign economies, and funds foreign healthcare and education systems\u2014while our youth remain unemployed, our industries stagnate, and our imports balloon.\u201d<\/p>\n

While highlighting the strides made by his administration in energy, infrastructure, ICT, and human capital, he emphasized that these foundations needed to be part of a larger, more integrated plan.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe had laid the essential foundation then for energy and infrastructure, for roads, for ICT systems, and human capital investment. But we knew that we needed to go further. And that meant we needed an integrated, bold and coherent approach that dismantles the silos of past policies,\u201d Mahama stated. \u201cThe 24-Hour Plus Program is that collective answer.\u201d<\/p>\n

What began as a policy concept soon captured national imagination.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn 2020 and 2024, the idea of the 24-hour economy captured national attention. It became a slogan of hope, a symbol that change was necessary and possible,\u201d he said. \u201cOur task now is to move from vision to implementation, from aspiration to action. This launch is not the end but it is the beginning of a massive national mobilization.\u201d<\/p>\n

At the launch, Presidential Advisor on the programme, Mr. Goosie Tanoh, who also coordinated the programme\u2019s development, paid tribute to the diverse and dedicated teams behind the initiative.<\/p>\n

He noted that the programme was \u201cframed, developed, tested, written up, and illustrated by a dedicated, talented, and youthful workforce, along with a professional team, between January and May 2025.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cTheir ages range from 24 to 69 years old. I am personally grateful to every member of the Secretariat\u2014for your faith in Ghana, your long nights, your imagination, your competence. I could not have asked for a better team,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Mr. Tanoh also praised the leadership of President Mahama, crediting him with providing the vision that propelled the initiative forward.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe must acknowledge the presidency\u2014the leadership of President Mahama\u2014whose vision for a productive, prosperous, integrated, innovative, and equitable society has driven the development of this program.\u201d<\/p>\n

He added that the vision did not emerge in isolation, citing the important role of the NDC\u2019s 2024 Manifesto Committee, chaired by Danso Baffoe, now Cabinet Secretary.<\/p>\n

\u201cSpecial tribute is due to the members of the 24-Hour Economy Taskforce Team and the Jobs and Employment Sub-Committee of the manifesto committee. Thank you for your remarkable efforts, your dedication, and contributions. They are deeply appreciated\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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President John Dramani Mahama has traced the roots of Ghana\u2019s 24-hour economy initiative to deep reflection and lessons learned from his previous term in office, describing it as a transformative… <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"rop_custom_images_group":[],"rop_custom_messages_group":[],"rop_publish_now":"initial","rop_publish_now_accounts":{"facebook_2277560469115098_106292521332774":"","twitter_aToxNzczMzI3Njk4OTg4ODUxMjAxOw==_1773327698988851200":""},"rop_publish_now_history":[],"rop_publish_now_status":"pending","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-68511","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-blog"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/68511","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=68511"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/68511\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=68511"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=68511"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=68511"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}