Parliament Passes 24-Hour Economy Authority Bill

Parliament has passed the 24-Hour Economy Authority Bill, 2025, clearing the way for the establishment of the 24-Hour Economy Authority to implement the government’s 24-Hour Economy and Accelerated Export Development Programme.

The Bill is built around three core pillars: production systems development and transformation, supply chain and market systems development, and labour development.

Speaking on the floor of Parliament after the House adopted the committee report on the Bill, the Majority Leader and Leader of Government Business, Mahama Ayariga, clarified that the proposed Authority was not, in itself, the mechanism for creating a 24-hour economy.

According to him, the Authority would serve as a coordinating secretariat to ensure effective delivery across productive sectors and promote job creation through improved coordination among ministries, departments and agencies.

“What is being described as an Authority is essentially a Secretariat that already exists in the Office of the President. However, we want to confer authority status on it because this Secretariat will work directly with Ministers and sector ministries,” Mr Ayariga explained.

He argued that several policies introduced under the previous New Patriotic Party (NPP) administration, including the Planting for Food and Jobs programme, failed largely due to the absence of strong production systems to drive sectoral transformation.

Mr Ayariga therefore urged members of the Minority to study the 24-hour economy policy document to better understand its objectives and implementation strategy.

“It would be naïve to assume that after inheriting a very bad economy, the economy would immediately begin operating on a 24-hour basis,” he added.

However, the Bill faced strong opposition from the Minority, led by the Member of Parliament for Ofoase Ayirebi, Kojo Oppong Nkrumah, who argued that the legislation would expand bureaucracy and result in the waste of public funds.

“Mr Speaker, some of the world’s leading 24-hour cities, including New York, Tokyo, London, Bangkok, Dubai and Berlin, did not establish 24-hour economy authorities to achieve that status. This law merely creates another bureaucracy, complete with a Chief Executive, internal auditor and other officials, without delivering a 24-hour economy,” he stated.

Mr Nkrumah further contended that existing institutions such as the Ghana Export Promotion Authority (GEPA) already perform key functions related to export development, making the proposed Authority a duplication of roles.

He also criticised the Bill for failing to spell out practical measures for round-the-clock operations, noting that it does not specify which agencies, such as the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Authority (DVLA), would operate on a 24-hour basis, as promised by the National Democratic Congress (NDC) during the lead-up to the December 7, 2024 presidential election.

According to Mr Nkrumah, the only provision of the Bill that directly aligns with the 24-hour economy policy is the proposal to design an incentive regime, including fiscal and monetary incentives, for companies operating within the 24-hour economy value chain.

He also challenged claims by the Majority that 1,000 jobs had already been created under the programme, demanding evidence to support the assertion.