The Communications Officer of the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC), Sammy Gyamfi, has said that the party and its flagbearer’s plan to spearhead a 24-hour economy is to among other things transform Ghana into an export-led economy.

Speaking on The Probe on JoyNews, he further explained that the policy will transform Ghana from an import-dependent country into a self-sufficient and export-led economy.

“That is the overarching vision of this 24-hour economy. The 24-hour economy strategy would be the main driver of this strategy. And so, the rationale is simple. We are saying that for us to see the true transformation that delivers prosperity for all, true economic transformation that delivers decent, well-paying jobs for the people of this country, we need to invest in the productive sectors of the economy to achieve self-sufficiency and achieve an export-led economy.”

“That is why President Mahama has said that to achieve this, we are going to prioritize agribusinesses and agro-processing. We are going to prioritize modernization and mechanization of agriculture. We are going to prioritize manufacturing and value addition. We are going to prioritize the provision of the necessary incentives for the private sector to try for them to play their role in this economy.”

Mr Gyamfi explained that this goal cannot be achieved if the country runs on the traditional eight-hour work system explaining that that is too inadequate to attain the needed level of efficiency, productivity and growth they are aiming for.

“We need to create sustainable jobs and prosperity for the people of this country. God has given us 24 hours, why do we have to waste 16 hours and only work 8 hours when all the advanced economies will create various degrees of 24-hour economies?”

“What we are saying is that under this overarching vision of transforming Ghana, all the interventions and policies we are going to roll out must lead to a situation where businesses, companies and certain public services run 24/7,” he added.

This follows criticisms of NDC flagbearer, John Mahama’s proposal to create a conducive atmosphere for a 24-hour economy to thrive.

Political opponents have largely criticised the idea saying it is not a novelty, and cannot transform the Ghanaian economy in any way. On the other hand, some have lauded the proposal as one that could be a game-changer for Ghana’s economy.

Many of those against it believe aspects of Ghana’s economy already operate a 24-hour system, whereas others argue the country lacks the right infrastructure to efficiently run such a system.

However, Mr Gyamfi said that the party has measures and incentives, including creating an atmosphere of security and safety that would aid in achieving this proposal.

“This is not a mere political rhetoric. It's important to make that point, neither is it a mere slogan calculated for votes. It is a well-thought-through strategy which has its roots in the 40-year development plan which was put together under the erstwhile John Mahama government and published in 2018, I believe.”

“This is going to be a deliberate intervention by the government to create the enabling environment that will make it possible for a lot more companies, businesses and public institutions to operate around the clock.”